Australia’s most significant overhaul of industrial relations law in more than a decade is delivering measurable gains for workers, but leaves significant gaps unresolved, according to new research from the Centre for Future Work.

The findings land at a pivotal moment for industrial relations policy: the federal government is yet to formally respond to the Closing Loopholes Review conducted by Susan Booth, and there are signals that it is unlikely to proceed with a promised national labour hire licensing scheme.

The report, Contractual distancing, insecure work and the law, by Professor Emeritus David Peetz, examines the impact of the Closing Loopholes reforms – described as the most significant overhaul of the Fair Work Act since it commenced in 2009 – on labour hire, casual employment and gig work.

Among the clearest gains: around 1,500 mineworkers have received average pay rises of $31,300 since the introduction of Same Job, Same Pay laws, which allow eligible labour hire workers to seek pay parity with directly employed staff covered by the same enterprise agreement.

The changes have reshaped the labour hire sector more broadly. The number of people employed in ‘labour supply services’ has fallen by about a fifth since the reforms took effect, with direct employment rising by a roughly equivalent number of workers. The report argues this is evidence that businesses are moving away from labour hire arrangements as pay parity narrows the cost gap with directly employing staff.

A tighter legal definition of casual employment, combined with a clearer pathway to permanent work, has also coincided with a statistically significant fall in the casual employment rate: almost a fifth lower for full-time workers, though the drop is much smaller for part-timers. Gig and platform workers have gained ground too; digital platform workers and owner-drivers now have access to the Fair Work Commission, including protection against unfair deactivation, and a recent road transport contractual chain order responding to fuel cost pressures from the 2026 Middle East conflict.

Peetz frames the reforms as an important first step rather than a complete solution. He identifies several unresolved gaps: casual workers who want permanent employment can still fall through the cracks of the new pathway; it remains unclear how well Same Job, Same Pay is working in female-dominated industries; and there is little coordination between state and federal governments on workers’ compensation for insecure workers.

The central argument of the report is that government policy can make a real difference in reducing the exploitation of workers with little bargaining power, but that closing the loopholes fully will take more than one round of reform.

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Research page: Contractual distancing, insecure work and the law

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