Significant Workplace Relations Issues December 2025 by Australian Industry Group

Significant Workplace Relations Issues June 2025 by Australian Industry Group

Brent Ferguson, Ai Group's Head of National Workplace Relations Policy, joins Yoness Blackmore, Principal Advisor Workplace Relations Policy, to discuss the latest Significant Workplace Relations Issues report.

This podcast provides an update on some of the key issues outlined in the report:

the Fair Work Commission's Working from home model term proceedings, and the annual wage review

the passing of the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Setting Gender Equality Targets) Bill 2024

Government consultations and announcements on restraint of trade / non-compete clauses

Listen in to get an amazing insight into how one family has gone taken an idea from start-up to international business in just 10 years. Huds & Toke is a pet food company based on the Sunshine Coast, with a great story to tell.

Co-founder Russell Gibbons provides a masterclass on the keys to building vertically integrated businesses with complex omni-channels pathways to market. This is a must-listen episode for ALL business managers. It’s a great insight into taking an idea and a market opportunity to a successful business.

Podcast host James Scotland does a fascinating deep dive into the business with Russell. They discuss:

• The market opportunity, and the owner’s clear-eyed ability to verbalise the target market segment: both domestically and in the U.S.

• An insight into the global pet food market and how Huds & Toke adds value to the target sector.

• Innovative ways to create and build a brand that accurately reflects the values of the business – including a creative and surprising approach to deciding on a company name (it’s a magical and heart-warming story)

• How to make a husband-and-wife team work as a strong management team, and how to make building a business a lifestyle.

• The decision protocols around the selection of channels to market that suit the business and adds value (including an amazing story of Krispy Kreme dog treats)

• How not to be blinded by ‘dazzling lights’ and ‘big opportunities’ that aren’t as good as they initially seem.

• The keys to creating a vertically integrated business from regional Australia

• The constant challenge of cashflow, including an excellent approach to using debt collection as a way to create strong relationships with customers.

• The challenge of sustainable product packaging

• And much much more.

A wonderful masterclass of business management today. Not to be missed.

Today episode is an engaging café style chat with two supply chain specialists: Host James Scotland sits down with his old mate Andy Brightmore for a wandering and endearing chat on all things supply chain.

Listen in to hear the two have another of their usual fun and unstructured wanderings through the issues of business and life today.

Topics covered this time include:

• Why is Andy no longer considered one of the ‘youngest and the brightest’? (It’s a sad story)

• Andy’s fascinating multi-industry, multi-national, multi-discipline supply chain career.

• Andy and James’ learnings of supply chain management from the covid and post-covid years.

• The importance of relationships, resilience, and good people in building sustainable supply chains.

• The emerging challenge of a world economy that seems to be turning once again.

• The generational differences and what it means for markets and supply chains ( is there one?)

• And much more.

If you love a good chat, if supply chain and business improvements interest you, this episode is for you.

Everyone’s favourite CEO returns to the podcast to talk us through the current issue facing the Australian economy, and what impact could they have on business operations.

Innes delivers a masterclass in macro-economics covering such as issues as

- The upcoming Federal election: when will it be held and who will win.

- The latest on the significant changes to Workplace Relations laws, why Ai Group is running an extensive marketing campaign to highlight the issues and what businesses need to do to not get caught out.

- Why the conduct of the CFMEU is unacceptable, why Ai Group’s has strongly called for the construction part of the union to be deregistered. And what this means for businesses in other sector.

- Why the new ‘Safeguarding Australian Military Secretes’ Act is having an immediate and worrisome impact on business resulting in unexpected (and unacceptable) consequences. Innes calls this ‘complete over -reach by government).

- The impact of ongoing inflation and why this is creating an economy operating at different speeds and with different success

- The impact of geopolitics and other global activity on the economy and the uncertainty this is causing businesses in Australian and around the world.

- What’s going on with Australian Ports and why efficiency and productivity needs to be increased

- Why there is not ‘magic bullet’ to solving the challenges of the Australian economy, especially in terms of Digitalisation and Decarbonisation

- And much more more.

This is a MUST-LISTEN episode, especially for businesspeople keen to get deep insights intothe challenges facing Australia.. and what to do about it.

In this episode, host James Scotland ask Adam Blake: ‘How do we, in Australia, build resilient and sustainable supply chains in and from Australia’.

Blundstone Australia is a 150-year, family-owned, Hobart-based, globally-successful boot and apparel manufacturer. The company sells over 3 million pairs of boots annually to multiple markets in over 70 countries. It has a well-structured brand story and complex supply chain across the world.

James and Adam address many meaty topics in this wide-ranging and insightful conversations including:

• Achieving successful rapid international growth using innovative business design and organisational structures.

• Breaking all the rules to achieve stunning global reach and success from a traditional Tasmanian manufacturing business.

• Redesigning the business to become truly consumer-centric.

• Managing seasonal global demand, highly-variable supply requirements and ‘lumpy’ cash flow challenges.

• The excitement of ever-increasing Black Friday 4-day online sales, and why not to visit the Distribution Centre.

• The lessons of ESG, the digitalisation of the business, implementing new ERP systems, managing global pandemics and riding the roller coaster of constant rapid growth.

• The future of the business and the challenges ahead.

• Sponsoring V8 supercars and the Hobart Stadium.

• And much more...

Adam is a leading global supply chain and brand design specialist, and an engaging and insightful conversationist. This is an episode not to be missed.

In this episode, Jim Wilson mounts a passionate and cogent argument for the global shipping industry, especially in support of the industry’s performance during the Covid years.

James and Jim discuss the current issues of the industry and look to the future. Issues discussed include:

Recent and future expectations of container pricing

The issues for shipping in the Red Sea, the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal

How the global container industry works

The issues with Port operations around the world, and how Australia port compare to similar operations around the world

The two also have an extended conversation regarding the active decarbonisation of the shipping industry, and how the industry is leading the way.

A fascinating conversation full of insights and information on this critical industry to the Australian economy. Well worth a listen.

Digitalisation is a core subject of this podcast, and today we deep dive into digital disruption in supplier engagement and business matching.

James and guest Tim Walmsley investigate the challenge of building a successful digitalised business from start-up.

It’s a great discussion, and Tim provides lots of good insights including:

• The LEAN start-up approach and why it works

• The need to train your A.I. platform to operate the way you want it to

• The challenge of matching different terminology across industry sectors

• How to be flexible and scale digital operations for surge activity

• The international opportunities in technology for Australian businesses

• And much more

This episode provides rare and fascinating insights into digitalization. Highly recommended!

What’s the China market really like? What’s it like to start a business in China? To be a supplier? To be a buyer?

What’s the difference between an Italian craftsman and a Chinese worker?

Are we ahead or behind the average Chinese worker in terms of technology use and adoption?

In this episode, James chats with China expert Susan Heffernan about her decades of first-hand experience in the market, as a business owner and as a senior manager. It’s a fascinating chat with an insightful and fascinating business founder and manager.

China is a critical market for Australia and it's growing every year. Official figures report China is already Australia's largest two-way trading partner, accounting for 27% of our overall global goods and services trade in 2023. And it keeps growing: The two-way trade with China increased by 9.2% last year and now totals $326.9 billion every year.

So there's no doubt we as supply chain managers, as business improvement managers, as business development managers, even just as managers, need to be keenly interested and aware of China.

This episode provides rare and fascinating insights into an important market for Australian businesses. Recommended!