Charter of Contractual Fairness
On 1 July we launched our Charter of Contractual Fairness

We have heavily drawn the principles of contract fairness from the new consumer unfair contract protections laws. If it's fair for consumers, it's fair for small business people - the self-employed and independent contractors.

We are currently writing to Australian corporations asking them to commit to contract fairness in their dealings with small business people.
Election Face-off 2010
The federal election was held on on 21 August 2010. ICA was active in assessing the policies of the ALP and the Coalition. Here's our comparative summary of the parties' policies just before the election.
Tax burden: UK versus Australia
Just as the UK is moving toward more sensible small business (contractor) tax laws, in Australia we're having to defend the progress we've made.
Laughing lawyers
You'll be amazed by the 'slips' that some lawyers make in court.
Failure to fix unfair business contracts
ICA says "extend unfair contract protections for consumers to small business".

New laws:
Legislation #1 (March 2010)
Legislation #2 (June 2010)

Here's our summary of the situation.
How the legislation defines unfair contract terms.
Why small business people should have TPA protections from unfair contracts.
Industry/Retail super funds must come out
The Cooper Review into superannuation says the big funds are not disclosing enough and must be forced to do so. This is vital. See Chapter 4.

Here's why workers' money is at risk if disclosure is not enforced.
Look after your retirement
The Cooper Review of superannuation says Self Managed Super Funds are good and need little change to existing arrangements. This is welcome. See Chapter 8.

The Report also seems to have stopped the attack against SMSF's.
Stand Up for Your (Contract) Rights!
We're monitoring contracts in general and promoting good contracts in particular. For example:
Another bad contract (Jun 2010)
One of the worst contracts we've seen (Jan 2010)
'Tom' versus DEEWR (Nov 2009)
But a positive development from government
Ken Phillips comments
And some interesting discussions
Problems with Phoenix companies
Two ICA members' tell their stories
ATO information on reporting suspect activity.

Govt's attempts to do something:
ICA comment

Newspaper comment:
The Australian
The Age/Sydney Morning Herald
Business Spectator

What 'Tom' thinks
What 'Jim' thinks
Stop Sham Contracts!
ICA supports the prevention of sham contracts. We monitor what's happening with them:
One person's story
Successful FWO prosecution (Dec 2009)
Info from Fair Work Ombudsman (July 2009)
First sham contract prosecution: ICA summary
Make a complaint to FWO
Business Spectator article
Read the debate
Watching Global Economies
Watching the USA
The US economy appears to be in recession. At the very least, we're getting very mixed signals about what's happening. Click here for a rundown on some of the best links we've found.
Watching China
China has just passed Japan as the world's second largest economy. It could become the largest global economy by 2030. We're maintaining a watching brief on the Chinese economy here.
Watching Goldman Sachs
Rolling Stone magazine has blown the lid on Goldman Sachs:
Article 1 [July 2009]
Article 2 [April 2010]
Article 3 [May 2010]
Central Banks on Debt
Since mid-May, central banks have been worried about sovereign debt. Click here for a list of useful links and summaries.
What the Pessimists said (January 2010)
We've brought together some pessimistic views about economics and likely economic trends in 2010:
US toxic loans
'US as sick as Greece'
Ken Phillips's summary
An 'IMF' perspective
Predicting 2010
Government debt a giant ponzi scheme?


Click to enlarge.

Ken Phillips on the debt equation

Understanding "Us": Self-employed People
ICA is committed to quality research to understand self-employed people.

6 July 2010: We released a unique research report made possible by an unusual collaborative effort. The report shatters many preconceived beliefs about 'us'; small and micro-business people. We believe it has global implications.

Main points and commentary
Summary
Full report.

20 July 2010: Here's further research from Flying Solo:
Report Summary; Full report and from Kelly Services: Report. And here's a comparative chart of our own.

Australian military aircraft (JSF). Bad deal?
Australia's decision to buy the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) as the backbone of our air defence is under attack. Is this a bad procurement and contract management stuff-up? We've summarised the arguments and included some useful videos.

We Oppose Workplace Bullying
ICA opposes attempts by construction unions to bully their way on to work sites. Here are the issues from 2010:
Overview
Union violence on Westgate
Unions make threats

Statement from Abbott opposition on PSI
Shadow Small Business Minister Bruce Billson

5 June 2010

After months of using the Henry Tax Review to hide behind, the Rudd Labor Government must come clean about whether it plans to break or honour an election promise to small business independent contractors not to change current tax laws.

The Rudd Government must immediately and categorically rule out tax law changes demanded by the union movement and endorsed by the Assistant Treasurer that seek to treat small business independent contractors more like employees after refusing to reject the Henry recommendation (No. 10) to revise the current regime.

Despite the election 'no change' promise, the Rudd Government has chosen to slip and slide about whether Labor will honour explicit pre-election promises to independent contractors not to change the current law, brushing aside tax questions in the Senate of great importance to the self-employed and independent contractors as not part of the Rudd Labor Government's 'big picture'.

This is a very big deal for the self-employed and independent contractors and clearly it was thought to be politically important to Labor before the last election to make promises to this section of the small business community.

The shelter of the Henry Tax Review has been removed to reveal that the Government is considering changes to the very personal services income laws Labor said it wouldn't touch.

Despite Labor's written 'no change' assurance, Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry has previously stated that existing personal services income laws were "a threat to the integrity of the taxation system and a threat to working conditions of employees".

Government-sponsored recommendations, kept alive and further advocate by Henry, will turn the current laws on its head and create extraordinary new red-tape burdens, reporting obligations and complex regulatory requirements, after unfairly labelling tens of thousand of legitimate self-employed and independent contractors as 'shams'.

Now, all that seems important to this arrogant and out-of-touch Rudd Labor Government is breaking an election promise to raise the taxation and red-tape burden on the self-employed people and independent contractors, without justification, only to appease a few aggrieved and envious unionists.

Why has the Small Business Minister, Craig Emerson, seen fit to turn his back on his written undertakings before the election, purely to uphold another pre-election statement that " we (Labor) must never loosen our bonds with the trade union movement".

It is clear why the union movement wants to drag small business in to its web by forcing more 'direct employment' arrangements, but the Rudd Government makes no case for the need for change and seems only interested in a tax gouge on the small business and independent contracting community to help paper over Labor's huge Budget deficits.

The only evidence provided to support the claim that the current arrangements need changing is the result of a 2008-09 ATO compliance effort that identified 231 cases of high risk where 83% were found to be non-compliant.

This just proves that compliance activity targeting high risk cases is appropriate and should continue.

Trying to extrapolate this targeted compliance activity to imply that 4 out of 5 independent contractors are likely to be non-compliant with the current laws is complete nonsense and offensive to small business independent contractors.

The Rudd Labor Government needs to urgently confirm that it will honour its pre-election promise to independent contractors or 'fess up that it will increase the tax-take from the self employed and small business contractors if re-elected.


For ICA's Open Letter to the Prime Minister on the Federal Goverment's position on PSI, click here.