The role of the government on industrial relations is very important as it sets the legal framework that industrial relations

operates in. Appropriate industrial relations legislation should recognize the requirements of both employers and employees. Both the employee and the employer want to profit from each other but are also reliant on each other. This means that the equal bargaining power of employers and workers must be recognized (Peetz, David. 2006). Appropriate industrial relations laws should address any imbalance of power and give both groups an equal degree of control. Appropriate industrial relations should not only allow a mixture of both collective and individual bargaining but also facilitate employee participation in day to day workplace decisions. After all its the structure and framework of the employment relationship, which is governed by legislation that leads to good Industrial Relations. One of the main debates concerning industrial Is this essay helpful? Join OPPapers to read more and access more than 470,000 just like it! get better grades relations in Australia is the method used to organise and manage labour. Although both the current government and the opposition share differing opinions on the current industrial relations laws, most of the issues concern the use of third parties or unions, individualist and collectivist frames of reference and individual vs. collective bargaining. According to Accel-Team, appropriate industrial relations laws are there to protect both parties by protecting the weak (hence minimum wage); outlaw discrimination (race, sex, etc); determine minimum standards of safety, health, hygiene and minimum employment conditions (sick leave, annual leave, etc) to prevent the abuse of power by either party (Accel-team. 2005). If all these areas are addressed in the best interest of both the workers and managers, then this has the potential to lead to good...