Labor deliberately creates confusion 'cover' to attack independent contractors

23/09/10

The Gillard Labor Government is deliberately creating confusion and conflict as 'cover' for a union-inspired attack on independent contractors and self employed people.

The silence from Gillard Government Ministers about their intentions has been broken by new Assistant Treasurer, Bill Shorten, undertaking to consult unions and contractors' representatives over a 'wrangle' over current personal services tax laws.

There is no 'wrangle' - just a pathological union hatred of self employed small business people genuinely operating as independent contractors and not as 'employees' as the unions wish.

Contriving a 'wrangle' that sees Mr Shorten 'conciliate a compromise' that winds back the rights of independent contractors seems to be the strategy a secret ministerial-union taskforce has settled on.

And once again, the Gillard Government's Minister against Small Business, Senator Sherry, has gone missing when small business people need him to defend their legitimate interests.

No case has been made for change to the existing personal services income laws and the Government has failed to explain why tax office auditing and targeted compliance action is not effective.

It is clear why the union movement persists with shrill and prejudiced union claims against independent contractors to make more self employed business people 'employees', but Government needs evidence before embarking on an assault and tax gouge on the 2 million people involved in independent contracting.

A taskforce of Ministers and unions have been plotting for months to undermine independent contracting as a legitimate business model and this ideological fantasy is free of facts to justify this attack.

This attack on independent contractors and self employed people directly contradict earlier Labor assurances of 'no change' to existing tax laws and explains why the Gillard Government has avoided stating its true intentions.

Rather than be upfront and honest about its intentions, Labor Ministers have been slippery in their language and actions while secretly teaming with their union overlords to drag more independent contractors into their 'employee' net.

The Coalition and independent contracting community call on the Labor Government to reaffirm its 'no change' promise.