Dick Davies Writes...
"...the human fabric of the workplace precedes in importance that of technology!"
Dick Davies prods us to think about management, independence and motivation. Click here.
Sham Contract Issues
ICA supports the prevention of sham contracts. We monitor what's happening with them:
Successful FWO prosecution (Dec 2009)
Info from Fair Work Ombudsman (July 2009)
First sham contract prosecution: ICA summary
Business Spectator article
Read the debate
Work Safety Issues
There is a series of major developments occurring in the realm of work safety.
National Harmonization
See here for a summary and understanding of the proposed harmonized laws.
See here for ICA's submission to the draft National OHS laws.
Good/Bad Contracts
We're monitoring contracts in general and promoting good contracts in particular. For example:
One of the worst contracts we've seen
But a positive development from government
Ken Phillips comments
And some interesting discussions
What's Happening with Super?
ICA is monitoring super developments, particularly as they affect SMSFs.
Easier Super Admin
Peter Strong submission
Govt super clearing house (through Medicare)
Is Super Safe?
Business Spectator explains attacks on SMSFs
Big super in trouble (USA) Mark I
Big super in trouble (USA) Mark II
USA super funds corruption
Australian Super Review
Profile of Australian super funds
Government review: overview
Government review: 24-page report
History Repeats
Here's an interesting quotation from the history books! Images of the USA today?
'The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be filled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome be bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance'
Cicero---55 BC
ICA Small Business Videos
During 2009, ICA made a series of videos on small business issues. The collection appears below.
Introduction
7m 45s
Click here for video
'Business in Crisis'
5m 24s
Click here for video
Managing relationships when you are in business for yourself
6m 00s
Click here for video
The early years
4m 54s
Click here for video
Basic Business Errors
10m 01s
Click here for video
Managing Debt
7m 04s
Click here for video
Rocket Science
3m 04s
Click here for video
Surviving the Hard Times
5m 17s
Click here for video
Research and Marketing
5m 35s
Click here for video
Crash Without Cash
8m 54s
Click here for video
Building Relationships
ICA Summit 2009
At our very successful Summit on 12 November, we brought together a unique group of presenters from small and big business, government, academia and the research arena. Conference Presentations are here.
... Unquote
Illegal workers/Phoenix companies
Two ICA members' tell their stories
ATO information on reporting suspect activity.
The Pessimists' Economic Views
(Posted January 2010)
We've brought together some pessimistic views about economics and likely economic trends in 2010:
Ken Phillips's summary
The Atlantic
Pivot Capital
New York Times
Business Spectator
Wall Street Journal
Investors Insight
Reuters
The Telegraph
New York TImes




























News Items

A really clear explanation of the GFC [13 March 2010]
Elizabeth Warren is Chairwoman of the US Congressional Oversight Committee. It's an influential position. In this video interview she makes a great deal of common sense. She explains in simple language why the GFC occurred, the problem with bad consumer contracts in the US, what's happening with Greece and more!

Independence culturally based? [11 March 2010]
This article from Newsweek claims that the emerging middle classes do not conform to Western notions of consumerism and other values. What does this say for the quest for independence in the workplace? Dick Davies' ideas are interesting within this context. You can read Dick's latest article here an send us your thoughts about it here.

Government gets it wrong on small business tax review [7 March 2010]
Robert Gottliebsen from Business Spectator has given a hard-hitting analysis as to why the government is so wrong and so politically threatened by this proposal. Click here.

We've been critical before of the government's review of PSI laws. Here Ken Phillips explains in an Australian Financial Review article from 26 February. In following this direction, the government is going to undo a decade of progress on small business tax reform and enormously complicate things for self-employed people.

ICA's preliminary analysis is here. The recommendations raise enormously complex and strange ideas about business. For the Report itself, click here. For Senator Sherry's '1990s throwback' press release, click here. For Ken Phillips' Business Spectator article on the matter, click here.

A global Greek tragedy? [7 March 2010]
Confused by Greece? Is it the ticking global financial time bomb that some people think it could be? This article gives a really good summary. Consider these points:

The New York Times also has some commentary here.

Motivation at work [7 March 2010]
"...the human fabric of the workplace precedes in importance that of technology!" Dick Davis continues his thoughts on independence and motivation here. This time he's writing about the steps that independents need to take to have their full economic impact.

China's empty new city [4 March 2010]
This Al-Jazeera TV news clip gives an amazing expose of the Chinese stimulus package resulting in the building of a totally sparkling new but empty city.

But China's China Daily says that the Chinese are saving the world! And the billionaire investor, George Soros, says that the Chinese are top notch!

Update: ATO systems update [4 March 2010]
We have previously advised that the tax office was undertaking a major computer shut down and upgrade during January/February that affected the processing of all personal tax returns. The ATO reports that this is now finished and everything is back to normal. If you have problems with your tax return, see ATO advice here.

New-look forms will now be issued to taxpayers as of February. You can find two of them here:
Taxpayer Statement of Account
Notice of Assessment

They seem to be clearer than the old ones. An ATO explanation of the new forms is here.

Confused by 'modern' awards? [26 February 2010]
If you employ anyone, the new awards are confusing many people. We've put together a list of the 123 new awards and created links to them. This list might help to identify any award that applies to you. Sorry---only ICA members can access the list, but it's only $50 to join.

Banking stories [26 February 2010]
Here are some recent bank stories:
'Secret banking cabals' revealed in USA.
Australian government to set up Australia Post as a bank?
CBA does a 'Storm' fix.
Reflections on Banking Regulation
The Quiet Coup
Has Obama fixed banking?
Our banks must tread carefully.

Don't panic yet on super [24 February 2010]
There's some sensible SMSF advice coming out. Go here for a speech by the Chair of the super review, Jeremy Cooper. And this article from Eureka Report is just about the most sensible advice we've seen on running your SMSF.

There's a lot going on for SMSFs at the moment:
Here's the Cooper Review into Super.
The SMSF Professionals Association has just held a conference.
The ATO has free seminars.
The ATO is targeting SMSF compliance.

But we need to be aware of attacks against SMSFs. Go here for a helpful submission to the Review from ICA member Allen Cummings.

BIG decision on work safety laws [16 February 2010]
For the latest implications of the High Court's decision, click here.

On Wednesday (3 February) the High Court released its judgment in the Kirk case, effectively striking down the NSW OHS laws as they have been applied. This is a huge development which affects all OHS laws nationally.

Listen to the ABC Radio interview of Graeme Kirk and Ken Phillips explaining the case and its implications here. The lawyers who ran the High Court case have supplied a summary of the decision here. Ken also took part in a Boardroom Radio roundtable discussion (The Australian) which you can hear here.

See Ken Phillips's Business Spectator article here. Members' comments are here.

Debating Debt [15 February 2010]
Last week a debate over debt became the central focus of economic discussion about the global financial crisis and the assumed recovery. How big is the problem and how will the global debt bubbles be resolved?

We've put together a discussion drawn from Australian and international articles. We don't know if there's an answer, but it paints a picture!

Fight the cons using sham contracts [21 January 2010]
Late in 2009 we reported on 'one of the worst contracts we've seen'. This involved a large company with many independent contractors. We are doing some follow up.

More recently, we were able to offer a small touch of advice where we feel we've made a difference. We received an email from a woman subjected to what sounded like a sham contract and where payments owed to her were being denied. We referred her directly to the complaints section of the Fair Work Ombudsman confirming what she thought should be her course of action. Her short story is here.

There are always con artists hanging around in society ready to rip off the vulnerable. At least in the sham contract area we now have an effective institution to chase up complaints. People should use this. Here's the link.



Join Now!
Click here to become a member of Independent Contractors of Australia. Membership is open to all independent contractors. Two forms of membership are available to individual contractors: affiliate contractor or full contractor membership. Membership fees are $55 for one year (or $110 for three years) for affiliate members and $110 for one year (or $220 for three years) for full contractor members. Further information about the categories of membership and their benefits is available at the link above.