Reporting exemption puts employees at risk
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia(ASFA) has warned the Federal Government that legislation exempting employers from reporting quarterly to employees on their compulsory superannuation contributions risks fundamentally undermining the new choice of fund regime.
In a submission to the Senate Economics Legislation Committee ASFA said the Tax Laws Amendment (Superannuation Reporting) Bill ran counter to the Government’s own promise to help employees monitor whether their employer was paying their superannuation.
“ASFA considers this move to be contradictory to the spirit of choice, which is supposed to be about giving employees more control over their super,” it said. “Passage of this bill will see many employees disadvantaged when choice of fund is introduced next year.”
The ASFA submission said that workers in the small business sector would be particularly disadvantaged because the Australian Tax Office (ATO) had previously indicated that the groups of employees most affected by employer non-compliance with the superannuation guarantee were contractors, part-time and casual employees, women and those employed in regional areas.
“At present, around 10,000 employees a year report to the ATO a possible non-payment of super by their employer or ex-employer,” the submission said. “It has been suggested that this is only the tip of the iceberg since many workers are unaware of their employer’s non-compliance.”
The submission said that ASFA is concerned that a number of employers will “find refuge for poor employment practices in the proposed reduction of obligations”.
“The Association does not see the imminent increase in employers’ obligations under choice of fund as a valid reason for abandoning the legislative reporting requirement and eroding the rights of employees,” the submission said. “Rather we see urgent need for the Government to provide information and education to employers on their obligations and the procedures they will have to follow under the choice regime.”
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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