Unions, business leaders and civil society groups will descend on Canberra for a two-day summit designed to find "common ground" on the challenges and opportunities facing Australia's economy.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a jobs and skills summit will be held in Parliament House on September 1 and 2.
Changes agreed to at the summit could be implemented as quickly as the following month's federal budget, as the government declares its intent to build a "bigger, better-trained and more productive workforce" and boost incomes and living standards.
Peak trade union and business groups have welcomed the summit, but the Coalition opposition says a "Labor talk-fest" isn't needed because the problems are well known across the sector.
The summit, which is expected to have about 100 attendees, will cover seven focus areas, including measures to keep Australia's unemployment rate down, addressing skills shortages and ensuring women have equal pay and opportunities in the workforce.
Expanding job prospects for disadvantaged cohorts, improving migration settings and maximising opportunities from the clean energy revolution will also be discussed at the summit, which Mr Albanese promised to hold if he won the May election.
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The outcomes from the summit will inform an employment white paper, which will help design the future of Australia's labour market.
The new Labor government has inherited an economy which is grappling with a range of domestic and international shocks.
While the unemployment rate remains low at 3.9 per cent, inflation is running hot, interests rates are on the rise and energy prices are surging amid the ongoing fallout to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Businesses are also struggling to find staff, prompting calls for changes to the skilled migration system.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers on Monday signalled that measures discussed at the forum could be included in the October federal budget.
"It's about picking the brains of people around Australia, including at the summit, to make sure that we have all of the ideas together," Mr Chalmers said in Canberra.
"The government changed hands at a time of high and rising inflation, falling real wages, labour shortages and all of the challenges that come with that.
"So we owe it to the Australian people to try and find that common ground, so we can solve these challenges and reach our common objectives together."
Cabinet ministers will take charge in particular areas, with Minister for Women Katy Gallagher, for example, coordinating work around the experience of women in the workplace.
Business Council of Australia chief executive Jennifer Westacott said the summit was an opportunity to "reset the economy".
Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary Sally McManus said the event presented a chance to find solutions to a range of "systemic issues", including a neglected skills and training system, a "broken" bargaining regime and flat wages.
"The union movement wants our country to be one where working people have quality jobs, not fragmented, unreliable low paid jobs where wages do not rise and workers never get ahead," she said.
Opposition skills and training spokeswoman Sussan Ley ridiculed the summit, saying a strategy to build the workforce had already been laid out by the former Coalition government.
"A Labor talk-fest with whiteboards and post-it notes will be a boon for small stationery shops - and that's about it," she said in a statement posted on social media.
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Dan Jervis-Bardy
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
