From Theory to Practice Webinar
Tripartism and compliance: The journey of the Fair Work Ombudsman in Australia
This 'From Theory into Practice' webinar, hosted by the ILO Research Department’s 'Improving Compliance with Labour Protection' research project, will explore the journey of the Fair Work Ombudsman in Australia.
The Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) is Australia national workplace relations regulator and is an independent statutory agency whose role is to promote harmonious, productive, cooperative and compliant workplace relations.
The head of the agency is Fair Work Ombudsman, Anna Booth, who commenced her term in September 2023. Following significant legislative change within the last two years, including the introduction of criminal penalties into the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) for intentional wage underpayments, Anna will address the efforts of her agency to embrace tripartism, collaboration and engagement, while shifting its regulatory approach to achieve more sustained compliance outcomes. Anna will describe how the FWO’s move to further embed tripartism into its activities builds on earlier successes in sector-specific areas, such as within the cleaning industry, and will describe the measures being put into place to evaluate the success of these efforts.
From Theory to Practice Webinars provide a platform for experts to share insights on the practical challenges and successes on labour compliance and enforcement across different jurisdictions. These seminars serve as a bridge between theoretical knowledge and real-world application with the spirit to exchange ideas and learn from peers about this complex field of labour regulation.
About the speaker
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Anna BoothFair Work Ombudsman, Australia
Anna Booth commenced her 5-year appointment as Fair Work Ombudsman on 1 September 2023. Anna has extensive and diverse experience in industrial relations spanning 45 years, working with unions, private, and public sectors. From 2012 to 2020 Anna served as the Deputy President in the Fair Work Commission (FWC); Australia’s workplace relations tribunal. She was instrumental in setting up the FWC’s Collaborative Approaches Program, formally known as the New Approaches Program.
Prior to taking up her role as Deputy President at the FWC, Anna was Chair and a non-executive member of the Slater and Gordon board. She held this role since the law firm’s listing on the ASX in 2007. Anna also sat on various boards, including the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and insurer NRMA, as well as industry superannuation owned financial services companies ME Bank and IFM. Anna has taught at the Australian Institute of Management and lectured at the Macquarie Graduate School of Management.
During the amalgamation of the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union, Anna was the first female and youngest federal secretary of a union. She joined the Australian Council of Trade Unions as vice president in 1991. During her period in the union movement, Anna attracted national attention by exposing the exploitation of migrant women workers in sweatshop organisations.
Anna is an accredited mediator under the National Mediator Accreditation System and is the Patron of the Industrial Relations Society of New South Wales.
Moderator
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Fabiola MieresTechnical Officer, ILO Research
Fabiola Mieres joined the ‘Effective Labour Market Institutions Team’ at the ILO Research Department in 2023. Her two main areas of current research include: i) The design and consequences of transnational temporary labour migration schemes for labour protection of migrant workers, and ii) conceptual and practical analysis of enforcement and compliance approaches with labour protection. Previously, she worked in the ILO Labour Migration Branch conducting research on temporary labour migration and providing technical assistance to constituents on labour migration governance, and the socio-economic integration of migrants and refugees with a particular focus on Latin America and the Caribbean. She holds a PhD on International Political Economy from the University of Manchester (2014).