Qld to change law to remove job security

23 Aug 2012, 6:26 pm   -   Source: AAP

The Queensland government will legislate to allow for the removal of employment security provisions for public servants.

The Queensland government will push legislation through parliament to kill off a Supreme Court challenge to its reforms of the public service.

The legislation will enshrine in law controversial directives issued last month for public employees.

The directives wipe out the employment-security and contracting clauses in current Enterprise Bargaining Agreements (EBA) for the state's 200,000 public servants, except police and health workers.

Attorney General Jarrod Bleijie says the clauses are overly restrictive and make reform of the public service difficult and cumbersome.

Together, the public servants' union, and the Queensland Council of Unions launched a legal challenge against the directives last week in the Supreme Court in Brisbane.

Together's Alex Scott says the bid to make them law clearly shows the government knew it would lose in court.

"This as a desperate attempt by a chaotic government to remove ... the role of the judiciary," he told AAP.

"It hamstrings ... the Supreme Court."

Voters, as well as the Liberal National Party's (LNP) major donor Clive Palmer, appear to have turned against the government and its jobs and services purge.

A ReachTel poll of 1200 Queenslanders, commissioned by the public service union, found on average 60 per cent thought the cuts had gone too far.

Only 38 per cent said they would put the LNP as their first preference, and 56 per cent said they were now less likely to vote for the party at the next election.

"These polls are a clear wake-up call for the government," Mr Scott told reporters in Brisbane.

Mr Scott also confirmed rumours that Mr Palmer had approached the union to donate to its counselling and advice service for public servants whose jobs are cut.

Mr Palmer distanced himself further from the LNP on Thursday after a fortnight of public stoushes, announcing he would no longer seek preselection for the party in the next federal election.

The premier suggested Mr Palmer is the Labor Party's "new best friend" and would start donating to them instead.

Mr Newman apologised for the anxiety the job cuts was causing to public servants but said they were victims of the Labor Party's excessive hiring.

"Unfortunately we are the ones who are cleaning up Anna Bligh's mess," he told parliament.

"We get the pooper scooper out every day of the week. We have to make these tough decisions."

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