Working from home plan not a bad thing: Nunn

GOLDEN Plains Chamber of Commerce president Peter Nunn has pushed back against the Victorian Regional Chamber Alliance’s criticism of a State Government plan to legislate working from home at least two days a week.

Mr Nunn said his chamber had not met so he could not speak for it, but his personal opinion was that opposition to the proposal was “completely wrong”.

“I’m all for it (working from home),” Mr Nunn said. “I’ve been working from home for most of my life.

“Purely on an environmental basis it’s outrageous to expect people to travel for half their lives to go to an office they don’t actually have to be at.

“So I disagree strongly with her message.”

The message he was referring to was a statement by alliance chair Jodie Gillett that described the proposal as “seriously concerning”.

“The vast majority of Victorians are currently able to negotiate a workable solution that is beneficial to both employee and employer,” said Ms Gillett, who is also CEO of Commerce Ballarat.

“Placing these arrangements in legislation removes the autonomy small businesses rely on to run their businesses effectively.

“The proposal states ‘reasonable’; who is to decide what is reasonable?”

Premier Jacinta Allan announced on 2 August that her government planned to introduce legislation next year enshrining in law the right of any employee – public or private – to work from home at least two days a week.

The move has been roundly condemned by business groups including the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Australian Industry Group.

In contrast, it has been generally welcomed by unions.

But Ms Gillett has come down firmly on the side of business.

“More than 97 per cent of businesses are small businesses; this will impact them disproportionately and again regional and rural businesses will shoulder more of the brunt,” she said.

“Victoria is already home to an extensive amount of red tape that makes doing business extremely difficult, and the proposed legislation could further hinder local enterprise.

“It creates unnecessary division despite a widespread culture that allows work-life balance discussions between employers and employees.

“Regional chambers support an open dialogue between employers and employees that reflects collaboration, not an additional maze of legality.”

Ms Gillett said productivity must be protected in order to improve the economy, but the proposal privileges select industries and overlooks others, deterring workers from sectors that fall outside its bounds like those in construction, childcare, retail and hospitality.

“This is an unfortunate example of over-governance that further muddles the structure of industry, micro-managing systems that are not under threat whilst ignoring deeper issues,” she said.

But Mr Nunn did not see things the same way, adding that his opinion was a personal one.

“They’re not the chamber’s thoughts, they’re my thoughts,” he said.

Mr Nunn said he was not even certain the chamber would discuss the issue.

Only one of its members actually had a shopfront and most were working from home anyway, he said, the vast majority of which were small businesses or home businesses.