According to the federal government, the Closing Loopholes legislation is a commitment ‘to getting wages moving and strengthening enterprise bargaining’. For employers, it feels like the thin end of the wedge.

The legislation is deliberately complex while simultaneously too vague to determine its implications. The only thing we know for certain is that the 284 pages of legislation and accompanying 521-page explanatory memorandum will keep lawyers in their fine suits for decades.

The Business Council of Australia saw the danger early saying, ‘Hundreds of key decisions are left to regulations, the Fair Work Commission, yet to be determined codes, or the unilateral...