Become a Member Donate Now

• Labour Market

Labour markets tend to be among the most regulated markets in the economy. While these regulations were meant to protect workers, they are often counterproductive by putting obstacles in the way to job creation. Finding the right balance between these two goals remains a difficult task.

TARGET30: Reducing the burden for future generations
David Murray AO, Maurice Newman, Simon CowanJuly 1, 2013PF25

TARGET30 is a campaign promoting smaller government and cutting government spending to less than 30%...

Ignoring the writing on the wall
Alexander PhilipatosJune 28, 2013

Ford’s recently announced departure from Australian manufacturing may be the only signal strong enough to...

Union campaign emotive but misleading
Alexander PhilipatosJune 21, 2013ON LINE Opinion

Advertisements from the ACTU depicting parents struggling with the demands of work and family have...

What is driving income inequalities?
Peter SaundersMay 31, 2013

I was recently asked by a journalist if we should be concerned about widening income...

Resurrecting the fossils of arbitration
Alexander PhilipatosMay 31, 2013

The poor public reception to the Coalition’s Work Choices reforms allowed the ALP to take...

Politics over policy in industrial relations
Alexander PhilipatosMay 29, 2013ON LINE Opinion

The Coalition's industrial relations plan is a triumph of politics over policy, of timidity over...

Addressing Australia’s Productivity Problem. CORE Blueprint to Unshackle Productivity
Jim CoxAugust 14, 2025AP86

Introduction There is no one action that will lift Australia’s dwindling productivity growth; it is...

The Productivity Problem. Australia’s Growth Slump Is Undermining Prosperity
Jim CoxAugust 7, 2025AP85

Executive summary Concern over Australia’s slow rate of productivity growth is justified as it is...

Business Means Business. Why Corporates Should Avoid Social Activism
Simon Cowan, Emilie DyeJuly 18, 2024AP72
Senior management should be concerned they are putting their companies at risk of reputational harm...
scales
Budget Fails Important Policy Tests
Robert Carling, Gene TunnyMay 28, 2024IA150
The deficit budgeted for 2024-25, amounting to over $28 billion ($28,000 million), translates to a...
closing loopholes
Closing Opportunities, Not Loopholes
Gene TunnyNovember 30, 2023AP49
The Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill 2023 would have adverse effects on Australia’s...
wages growth
Wages Growth in Australia: Evidence and policy evaluation
Gene TunnyNovember 24, 2022PP47
This Policy Paper reviews the evidence regarding wages growth in Australia since the 2008 financial...
Why the war on wokeness is actually killing conservatives in Australia
Simon CowanNovember 29, 2025CANBERRA TIMES
Australian conservatives — however much they might be impressed by the way MAGA has fought...
Confessions of an Industrial Relations Club reporter
Michael StutchburyNovember 21, 2025AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL REVIEW
A half-century on from stagflation, outdated workplace rules and union monopolies remain the biggest barrier...
At this rate, the only outcome from this summit will be making us poorer
Simon CowanAugust 9, 2025CANBERRA TIMES

As we approach the productivity summit to end all summits, the various players have begun...

Here’s why forcing workers back to the office won’t have the desired effect
Simon CowanMarch 22, 2025CANBERRA TIMES

Working from home is sneakily becoming one of the biggest emerging fault-lines in our society....

There are two ways to lift our living standards. Coasting isn’t one of them
Simon CowanAugust 26, 2024CANBERRA TIMES
News this week that the iron ore price has fallen to the lowest level in...
Back to the Future: Workplace Reform Takes Centre Stage Again.
Andrew BlythJune 5, 2024SPECTATOR

The industrial relations scare campaign has begun, as we count down to the next federal...

No Videos Available
Submission to the Independent Review of the Australian Public Service
Simon Cowan, Eugenie JosephAugust 1, 2018
Productivity Commission Inquiry Into Introducing Competition and Informed User Choice into Human Services: Submission in response to issues paper
Trisha JhaJuly 1, 2016CIS Submission

The Human Services Inquiry is ‘examining policy options in the human services sector that incorporate...

Submission to the National Commission of Audit
Alexander Philipatos, Jennifer Buckingham OAM, Jeremy Sammut, Robert Carling, Simon Cowan, Stephen Kirchner, Trisha JhaApril 1, 2014T30.08

The federal government’s Commission of Audit (CoA) was established in 2013 to review the performance...

Submission to the Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations References Committee
Andrew BakerSeptember 10, 2012

Submission to the Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations References Committee

...
Submission to Remote Participation and Employment Servicing Arrangements
Helen Hughes, Mark Hughes, Sara HudsonOctober 11, 2011

The Discussion Paper’s focus on participation and employment in remote Indigenous communities is welcome because...

No Podcasts Available

• Subscribe

Subscribe now and stay in the loop with our giving appeals, event alerts, newsletters and research updates.

We are always pleased to hear from you. If you have any questions or feedback, please contact us here:

+61 2 9438 4377
CIS Office
cis@cis.org.au
CIS Media
kpincott@cis.org.au