The secondary labour market and employee protection: Employment relations in New Zealand and Denmark in the 1990s

One of the primary concerns of many academic and social commentators in the field of employment relations throughout the 1990s has been the impact of the Employment Contracts Act 1991 on the more vulnerable segments of the labour market. Prior to its introduction there were predictions that the removal of the Award system and the concomitant breakdown in collectivism would lead to increasing inequality (Brosnan & Rea, 1991; Walsh, 1992). Whether this has been the outcome remains somewhat contentious. While critics of the Act claim it has impacted disproportionately on the secondary labour market (Dannin, 1997; Gosche, 1992; Kelsey, 1995), supporters of the Act have maintained throughout that wages are rising, more people have jobs because of the Act, and many people are satisfied with their contracts (Kerr, 1996, 1997). Max Bradford (1999), the Minister of Labour, asserted in a recent address on industrial relations, that the Act had enabled employers and employees to negotiate mutually beneficial contracts, “while ensuring the outcomes were fair and acceptable to society”.