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Tax Commissioner gives key speech praising the ATO

Sunday, March 17, 2019 

"Last Thursday (14 March), the current Australian Taxation Commissioner, Chris Jordan, delivered a major speech which (not surprisingly) was full of praise for the ATO. He also talked of implementing reform where it was needed. Well, we have a crucial one for him: amend the operation of the new Tax Tribunal so that it makes for an even playing field....." More

Powerful ‘anti’ forces need a bucket of icy-cold water poured over their heads

Monday, March 4, 2019

According to demographer Bernard Salt, there’s a big cultural shift in Australia towards being your own boss. And it’s a lifestyle thing... But there’s a problem. There’s a whole bunch of powerful groups who hate this Australian lifestyle urge..... More


Changes give taxman licence to monster small business

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

The Morrison government is setting up a much-wanted small business tax tribunal, but even before it starts we see efforts to white-ant its operation. Just how much small business needs an independent tax tribunal was revealed in court by Michael Cranston, the former top Australian Taxation Office official. Cranston’s testimony about the ATO’s internal culture was devastating..... More

Morrison’s great small business tax intent risks ‘blowing up’

Sunday, February 24, 2019

The intent of the Morrison government's Small Business Tax Tribunal ticks a large number of boxes for delivering fairness to small business people in disputes with the ATO. It’s an important major step. But goodness!!! It’s running off the rails already... More


More SEA News...

Global Self-Employment Updates
We monitor self-employment news from around the world. Full list here.

Big breakthrough in ATO treatment of small business people

Coalition government announces Small Business Tax Tribunal. This is a hugely important breakthrough

Key features:
  • Be totally separate from ATO.
  • Not involve lawyers.
  • Appoint a case manager to support the taxpayer.
  • Make decisions within 28 days of a hearing.
  • Require a payment of $500 from the taxpayer for each appeal.
And
  • If the ATO appeals the AAT decisions to the Federal Court, the ATO will pay the small businesses’ reasonable costs.
  • If there are test cases where lawyers are used, the ATO pays for the taxpayers’ lawyers.
Our commentary here.

ALP also looking to reform ATO
Our commentary here. Full story here. This includes history of our campaigning, submissions, case studies, etc.

Defend the right to be self-employed

Public sector bureaucracies along with unions are wanting to close down the right to be self-employed. We have seen these attacks before such as:

  • Contractors are ‘dependent’.
  • Sham contracting is rife.

See our responses on these arguments in 2011.  See our success at the International Labour Organisation in 2006.

And now the new attack is against the ‘gig economy’. We have new campaigns on our hands!

Self-employment challenges managerial orthodoxy

The supposed ‘rise’ of the ‘gig’ economy is causing much debate on whether its impacts are good or evil for society. But that debate is not new. In 2005, SEA's Executive Director, Ken Phillips, published his challenging book, Independence and the Death of Employment, in which he examined the fundamental changes that were occurring, even then, in the way we work and how notions about independence and the role of the commercial contract were fundamental to them. The Introduction to the book is available here. Recent arguments about the ‘gig’ economy have refired that debate.

Is your contract fair?

SEA can rightly claim huge success in achieving Unfair Contract protections for small business people. New protective legislation came into effect in November 2016—a world's first for self-employed people. Resources for checking your own contract are here.

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