The Australia Institute today welcomed the Government’s shake up of the superannuation system. “Common sense has finally prevailed,” said the Institute’s Deputy Director Josh Fear. “The overwhelming majority of super fund members want more simplicity not more choice. Since the Howard Government introduced Choice of Fund in 2005, many people have been forced to make

The Coalition’s plan to cut 12,000 jobs from the Commonwealth public service will have a significant impact on regional economies, according to a new analysis released by The Australia Institute today. “Cutting the public service by 12,000 jobs as Tony Abbott has proposed to do via a hiring freeze will have a major impact on

Prime Minister Gillard’s vision of a sustainable Australia must incorporate an infrastructure strategy for our major cities, not just regional Australia, according to The Australia Institute.

The recommendations of the Cooper Review into Australia’s Superannuation System could boost super payouts by as much as $100,000, according to analysis by The Australia Institute. This is even higher than the government’s estimate of an additional $40,000 in extra retirement income for an average wage earner.

The retirement savings of millions of Australians could be boosted by up to $100,000 if the Government adopts the Cooper Review’s MySuper proposal, according to an analysis by The Australia Institute.

Greater transparency and public engagement about the potential opportunities and risks presented by nanotechnology is required, according to a new report by The Australia Institute. While still an emerging field, nanoscale sciences and technologies (nanoST) are already present in our daily lives, with more than 1000 consumer products identified as containing nanomaterials.

The slight jump in the official unemployment rate to 5.8 per cent is just the tip of the iceberg, with the true figure likely to be around 12 per cent when the ‘hidden unemployed’ are taken into account.

In August, women’s unemployment increased by 0.2 percentage points while men’s fell by 0.2 percentage points. The female underutilisation rate increased by 1.0 percentage points to 15.5 per cent while men’s actually fell 0.6 percentage points to 11.9 per cent

Women account for up to 80 percent of Australia’s hidden unemployed, new research into the current economic downturn by The Australia Institute reveals. The report finds that not only are child-care responsibilities the most common reason why women struggle to rejoin the workforce, but those same responsibilities are a major reason that women are excluded

Discusses how the July 2009 tax cuts are highly skewed towards the rich. High-income earners get $41 per week and low-income earners get nothing at all.

The national survey of 2000 adults found that the notion of paying blood donors does not have widespread community support. Seventy-one per cent (71%) of respondents did not think that donors should be paid for their time when they donate blood.

Australia could introduce a paid parental leave scheme that pays for itself, creates nearly 9,000 new jobs and boosts the economy. The flow-on effect of paid parental leave on women’s participation in the labour market is likely to generate additional GDP of at least $2.5 billion and additional Government revenue of $625 million. This means

The Choice of Fund Policy has failed to resolve widespread consumer disengagement with superannuation. As few as four per cent of workers switch super funds each year and around half of this is ‘passive’ choice due to job change or fund closure. Choice of Fund has also been largely unsuccessful in lowering the number of

The value of time wasted on unsolicited telemarketing calls in Australia amounts to $1.58 billion annually. Two in three Australians believe that telemarketing should be banned altogether.

Highlights how the Australian Government has increasingly been making judgments about the character of individuals in migration and other areas over the last decade.

High income earners are using low-cost private health insurance products to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge according to a report released today by the Australia Institute. The Institute’s analysis uses unpublished ABS data to estimate that the practice is costing Australian taxpayers $230 million a year in lost revenue. The findings are made in Using