Expert Author

Alison Pennington

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Alison Pennington

Senior Economist

Alison Pennington is Senior Economist at The Australia Institute’s Centre for Future Work.

Alison conducts research on economic issues facing working people including the future of jobs, skills and training, collective bargaining, sector and industry policies, and the role of government. She has held previous roles in the foreign affairs & trade Advice Unit with the Department of Finance, public sector unions, and music teaching.

Melbourne

Research by Alison Pennington

On the Brink

Business Council of Australia Research Confirms Centre for Future Work Research Future of Collective Bargaining on the Brink

By Alison Pennington

Turning ‘Gigs’ Into Decent Jobs

What’s a ‘gig’ job, anyway? There’s lots of media hype about how people won’t have jobs in the future (they’re

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

Workplace Policy Reform in New Zealand

Australia can learn much from the policy leadership of the Ardern Government in New Zealand and its reforms to address

By Alison Pennington

The Future of Work for Australian Graduates

University-to-Job Pathways Key to Boosting Graduate Employment Outcomes The Centre for Future Work has released a major new report documenting

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

Collective Bargaining “Reform”

Business Council of Australia Research Confirms Centre for Future Work Research Coalition leaders hardly mentioned industrial relations topics during the

By Alison Pennington

Gender Inequality in Australia’s Labour Market: A Factbook

While women have made some progress in closing the wage gap and other dimensions of gender inequality in Australia, they

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

Working From Home: Opportunities and Risks

With many regular workplaces shut down to ‘flatten the curve’ of COVID-19, millions of Australians are now shifting their work

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

Log of Extraordinary IR Measures During COVID-19 Shutdowns

COVID-19 containment measures have suspended large sections of the economy. Governments have committed over $220 billion in income supports to

By Alison Pennington

An Investment in Productivity and Inclusion

TAFE system supports $92.5 billion in annual economic benefits The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in an era of unprecedented disruption

By Alison Pennington

How Non-Union Agreements Suppress Wage Growth – And Why the Omnibus Bill Will Lead to More of Them

Business Council of Australia Research Confirms Centre for Future Work Research Omnibus IR Bill will Further Reduce Wage Growth

By Alison Pennington

Submission to Senate Inquiry into the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020

In December 2020, the Senate of Australia launched an important inquiry into the federal government’s proposed Fair Work Amendment Bill.

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

Briefing Paper: Women’s Casual Job Surge Widens Gender Pay Gap

Casual Job Surge Widens Gender Pay Gap This briefing note presents data on the gendered composition of the employment recovery

By Alison Pennington

Creativity in Crisis: Rebooting Australia’s Arts and Entertainment Sector After COVID

When the Show Cannot Go On: Rebooting Australia’s Arts & Entertainment Sector After COVID-19 Culture is an inescapable part of

By Alison Pennington, Ben Eltham

International COVID-19 Income Supports: An Update

The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted global labour markets, and exposed long-standing gaps in social protection systems. Governments around the industrialised

By Alison Pennington, Jim Stanford

New International Research Exposes Australia’s Missed Wage-boosting Opportunities

As collective bargaining erodes in Australia, solutions from other countries could strengthen bargaining and lift wages New research on international

By Alison Pennington, Andrew Dettmer, Andrew Scott, Jim Stanford

Fragmentation & Photo-Ops

New Research: Australia’s Skills System Continues to Crumble After COVID Strong vocational education and training (VET) systems are vital to

By Alison Pennington

Budget Analysis 2022-23

The Commonwealth Government has tabled its budget for the 2022-23 financial year. As the nation emerges from two years of

By Alison Pennington, Dan Nahum, Eliza Littleton, Fiona Macdonald, Greg Jericho, Jim Stanford, Lily Raynes, Mark Dean