While Australia’s prosperity and economic outlook may be the envy of most of Europe at this point, uncertainty is tarnishing the rosiness of the average Australian worker.

The Spain, Greece, the UK and other nation embroiled in various levels of financial and employment-related turmoil the situation in Australia may seem meagre. This does mean not everyone is happy however, with recent stats showing 28 per cent of the workforce is staffed by casuals (up 13 per cent in twenty years) and just 60 per cent of all workers can claim their job is secure.

National President and Victorian secretary of the National Union of Workers, Tim Kennedy says: “In a wealthy country like Australia, with all the advantages we have, it is not right that we consign many of our fellow citizens to a life of limited opportunities. Increasingly our workplaces are becoming divided between ‘insiders’ - permanent direct employees - and ‘outsiders’, contracted out casual employees.”

Mr Kennedy says his Union wants to shape a nation where every worker is counted equally through contract reforms and better transparency in workplace agreements.

“A sensible and fair workplace legal scheme would ensure employers couldn't contract away through third parties their responsibilities to workers who work for them; and would ensure that all workers (however categorised) receive the same pay and conditions for the same work,” Union president Tim Kennedy said, “it would ensure that Labour Hire Agencies, whose business is the trade of human bodies, be subject to proper regulation and licensing to prevent exploitation. It would also ensure that workers are free to collectively bargain in groups that they can themselves select and that they can bargain in support of one another having secure and dignified work.”