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FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S DESK 
Many of you may have read a recent article in the Canberra Times raising concerns about the release of technical information from a prestige vehicle manufacturer to an independent service group attached to one of the countries larger supermarket chains. Contrary to what was alleged in the article there was never any attempt by the manufacturer and or his agent to deny anyone the information.
The independent repairer had made a commercial decision not to invest in the required technology at this point in time as the car park age of his service fleet did not warrant the investment.
It was unfortunate that the author of the article did not recognise the fact or appreciate the investment made and required by “An Authorised” dealer to ensure they can comply with all the requirements of operating a dealership. There is of course an old saying “If you have a $10.00 head buy a $10.00 helmet.”
The author also failed in the somewhat biased article to recognise the local dealer had done more than the right thing in checking the service codes on the vehicle and resetting the system –something the independent could not do.
The dealer did learn one very important thing in trying to satisfy the original request for a service quote—a general figure will not work and customers will hold you up to scrutiny. Customers automatically believe that dealerships are designed to “rip you off.”
The real message is to ensure that your sales team explains in full the service regime of the vehicle at the point of delivery. Your service team doesn’t jump for the back of an envelope quote when pushed by a customer and that your whole team understands and can relay to your customer why you look after their vehicle the way you do.
It is just coincidence I believe that at the time of writing this article I received notification on the Choice of Repairer Bill 2010, Family First Senator Steve Fielding will introduce new laws into the Federal Parliament which are designed to make repairing the family car cheaper.
The Bill would make it a legal requirement for the giant car makers to hand over the technical and diagnostic tools necessary for servicing of all new vehicles.
It appears there is a ground swell of opinion out there that dealerships are ripping people off with higher prices for dealership generated repairs. The claim is independent repairers are unable to service vehicles at a less expensive price because they are denied access to vital information.
It will be interesting to see what will happen to service charges when the fixed price servicing agents invest in equipment and train staff in the appropriate diagnostics.
My advice to all repairers is be sure of your facts and ensure your staff relay the correct message. The worth of your business is always calculated in customer satisfaction nothing can equal it and nothing can beat it.
2010-2011 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
The annual general meeting of the MTA.ACT was held on Thursday 17 June at the Ainslie Football Club. We are pleased to announce the appointment of the following directors for the ensuing year.
President - Peter Taylor
Vice President - Jon Waterhouse
Directors - Barbara Watson, Veronica Olmos, Peter Taylor, Rob Cunningham, John Whyte, Paul McGuinness, Dale Brede, Jon Waterhouse.
Following the formalities of the evening, the members and guests joined in recognising and thanking Helen Jones for her contribution to the Association for the past 15 years, and wished her well in retirement.
EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS UPDATE 
RECENT CHANGES TO THE VEHICLE MANUFACTURING REPAIR, SERVICES & RETAIL AWARD 2010
Since the publishing of the vehicle modern award on 1 January 2010 some significant changes have been made by Fair Work Australia (FWA). These include:
Reintroduction of Holiday Loading - Annual leave loading which was overlooked in the publishing of the new aard has been reinstated. Employers will still be required to pau employees 17.5% annual leave loading when employees go on a period of annual leave. This provision was operative from the first full pay period on or after 29 January 2010.
Unpaid 15 minute Morning or Afternoon Tea Break
- This rest break too has been reinserted by FWA after it discovered that it had not included it in the new award. This provision is in the same terms as the previous one, is not a mandatory break, and continues to rely on the employer to determine as to whether an unpaid morning tea break will be introduced. Some members entered into individual award flexibility agreements with employees to maintain this arrangement after it was excluded from the modern award. These flexibility agreements will be superseded given this award provision and there will be no requirement to secure such agreements for new employees. Members that altered hours ofwork due to the omission of this provision, may move to revert back to previous arrangements if that is the preference - MTA suggest reasonable notice be given to affected employees unless such employees agree to the change,
in which case revised arrangements could commence immediately.
Reimbursement of Apprentice Training Fees - The provision requiring employers to reimburse an apprentice their training fees was in the previous award. This provision too was omitted from the modern award and has also now been reinstated. Therefore employers, subject to an apprentice presenting satisfactory reports of satisfactory conduct, are to continue to reimburse such apprentice for all fees that the apprentice paid to the technical college or registered training organisation.
PAID PARENTAL LEAVE UPDATE
On 4 May, the Federal Government released draft legislation on the proposed Paid Parental Leave Scheme. Under the proposed legislation, paid parental leave will be available for permanent and casual workers, contractors and the self-employed.
The Scheme will be funded by the Federal Government. It will provide for up to 18 weeks paid parental leave at the Federal Minimum Wage (currently $543.78 per week) for eligible parents of children born or adopted after 1 January 2011. Eligible parents will have to meet tests relating to their work history, their income and residency.
Although paid parental leave will become available from 1 January 2011, employers are not required to act as paymasters until 1 July 2011. The intention is to align this requirement with the beginning of the new financial year. Up until that time, employers may choose for the Family Assistance Office to make the payments to the relevant employees.
The payments are taxable and employees on leave will usually be paid in arrears. Employers will need to withhold PAYG tax amounts and the payments will be made as part of the ordinary pay cycle of the employer. Superannuation will not be payable on the parental leave payments. Paid parental leave will not result in the accrual of any additional leave entitlements nor will it give rise to an increase in workers' compensation premiums. The Federal Government is reported to be working with the various State governments to ensure the payments are not subject to payroll tax.
Further updates will be provided to members prior to the commencement of the scheme.
Phasing in of new clerical classifications and changes to vehicle roles plus new penalty/loading payments on and from 1 July 2010
With the making of the Clerks Private Sector Award 2010 (Clerks Modern Award), on and from 1 July 2010 clerical employees will need to be moved from Grades 1 to 5 under the Clerical and Administration Employees NAPSA to the 5 level structure under the Clerks Modern Award.
There will be some combining of roles with Grades 1 and 2 falling into Level 1. Grade 3 will primarily fall into Level 2 but some Grade 3 clerks will fall into Level 3. Likewise some Grade 4 will also now fall into Level 3 . However, most existing Grade 4 and 5 clerks will all fall into Levels 4 and 5 respectively. This is a bit complicated and will depend on the duties and responsibilities of employees. MTA Employment Relations is preparing a comparison table to assist members and this available by contacting the MTA office. Determining where employees fit is the first step that must be followed so members can determine the correct rates of pay for employees when the 1 July 2010 Minimum Wage Decision is determined by Fair Work Australia.
The role of Record Keeper other and Record Keeper as defined previously covered under the Vehicle RS & R Award will now fall under the Clerks Modern Award at Levels 1 and 2 respectively.
Certain other roles under the Vehicle Manufacturing, Repair, Services and Retail Award 2010 will be undertaking phasing in of new wage levels and penalty structures and phasing out of existing wages and penalty arrangements. Motor Cycle Salespersons on and from 1 July 2010 will now move from the Level 4 Salesperson other to Level 6 Vehicle Salesperson – the relevant new wage rate will be phased in, and the existing penalty payments for Saturday and Sunday will be phased out with the Sunday load applicable to Vehicle Salespersons phased in. Similarly for Finance and Insurance and Aftermarket Salespeople existing penalty arrangements for Saturday and Sunday will be phased out and the Sunday load for Vehicle Salespersons phased in to replace the current penalty arrangements.
The phasing out and in will happen over a 5 year period from 2010 to 2014. MTA Employment Relations appreciate that this is going to be a bit complicated so the comparison table and other information provided will be crucial for this transition to happen smoothly.
MTAA SUPERANNUATION 
Three Simple Rules for Smarter Super
Search for lost super, consolidate your funds, and make the most of government co-contributions.
Rule 1: What’s missing? Search for lost super
Super is your money. Don’t ignore it. One in two working Australians has an unclaimed super balance, and there is currently more than $12.9 billion in lost or forgotten super, according to AUSfund, one of Australia’s largest unclaimed super funds. How does it happen? If you’ve had more than one job, chances are there is more than one super fund account with your name on it. If you’ve moved house, changed names or employers, your old fund may have lost touch with you. Why not claim what’s yours and roll it into your MTAA Super account? It’s easy to arrange.
Action plan: Visit the AUSfund unclaimed super website, www.unclaimedsuper.com.au or call AUSfund on 1300 361 798; visit the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) website, www.ato.gov.au or call the ATO on 13 28 65.
Rule 2: Get it together! Consolidate your funds
Now that you’ve searched for and found any ‘missing’ money, check your files at home to see if you have any other super fund statements. If you have several accounts you could be losing money by paying multiple fees or even multiple insurance premiums. It may be better value for you to consolidate all of your super into your MTAA Super account, with one set of low fees and one lot of affordable insurance cover. It’s important to consider any exit fees you might have to pay or any loss of benefits from other funds, for example insurance.
If you plan to roll over your super into MTAA Super, it’s essential that you receive written notification from MTAA Super that your insurance arrangements have been accepted before you cancel your existing insurance cover with your other fund. Before deciding whether consolidating is right for you, we recommend that you seek personal financial advice from a licensed financial planner.
Action plan: If you decide to rollover your super into MTAA Super, fill in a rollover form for each account you want to consolidate. The form is downloadable from our website, www.mtaasuper.com.au, or call us on 1300 362 415. Send your completed forms to MTAA Super and we will forward them to your other funds.
Rule 3: Take advantage of co-contributions
This may sound too good to be true, but you can receive up to $1,000 from the government by simply making contributions to your super.
How does it work? The government ‘co-contributes’ $1 for every eligible $1 you contribute from your after-tax income. This goes up to a maximum of $1,000 if your total income (including certain fringe benefits and salary-sacrifice contributions) is less than $31,920 in this financial year and you are under 71 years old. If you earn more than $31,920 you are still eligible for some co-contribution, up to a total income (including certain fringe benefits and salary- sacrifice contributions) of $61,920.
Action plan: This couldn’t be easier. Make additional after- tax contributions to super, and the government co-contribution will be taken care of by the ATO as long as you submit a tax return and we have your tax file number. If you have any questions call our Customer Service Centre or visit the ATO website, www.ato.gov.au.
A Little More Now Equals a Lot More Later
These three simple rules will get you started, but there are many other smart ways to increase your retirement savings. Remember that the more you contribute now, the more time your money has to grow and earn compound interest (interest on interest) over the long term.
MTAA Super has a fact sheet called Making Extra Contributions that you can download from our website, www.mtaasuper.com.au, or ask our Customer Service Centre to send it to you. You can also ask us about attending an MTAA Super seminar, where these easy steps and more will be explained in detail.
The information in this article is provided by Motor Trades Association of Australia Superannuation Fund Pty Ltd (ABN 14 008 650 628 AFSL 238718), Trustee of the MTAA Superannuation Fund (MTAA Super) (ABN 74 559 365 913). Any advice contained in this article is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. The MTAA Super Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), an important document containing all the information you need to make a decision about MTAA Super, can be obtained by calling MTAA Super on 1300 362 415 or from www.mtaasuper.com.au. You should consider the PDS in making any decision about MTAA Super.
OFFICE OF REGULATORY SERVICES UPDATE 
WORKSAFE ACT
Workers Compensation Act Changes Take Effect from 1 July 2010
To provide a fair and equal distribution of workers compensation expenses across all ACT private sector employers, a series of changes to the Workers Compensation Act 1951 (the Act) and the Default Insurance Fund (DI Fund) will take effect from 1 July 2010, and include:
• new insurer disclosure practices regarding the Default Insurance Fund levy;
• clarification of the broad definition of a ‘worker’ for workers compensation purposes;
• a requirement that the ACT Wages and Earnings Guide be used for working out total wages for the purposes of premium calculations under the Act.
These changes follow significant improvement to the compliance framework underpinning the Act that took effect in early 2010.
All businesses are encouraged to report fraud and non-compliance to WorkSafe ACT by phoning 6207 3000. Further advice can also be found on our website.
FAIR TRADING
International Day of Action Against Mass Fraud
Millions of consumers and businesses around the world are being fleeced of tens of billions of dollars by mass marketed advance fee frauds – or, as they are better known – scams.
In an effort to combat advance fee fraud, “Think Fraud! Global Day of Action” was held on 1 June 2010 as part of a global day of action against fraud.
Mass marketing fraudsters use mass-communications media – including the internet, mass mailings and telephones – to trick consumers into providing small amounts of money upfront in order to obtain larger amounts of money later. Most commonly, consumers are likely to be told they have won a lottery, a prize, a competition or are the recipient of a deceased estate or inheritance.
However, in order to claim these ‘winnings’ or ‘prizes’, the consumer must send payment for expenses such as government taxes and/or legal fees.
Scams are often disguised in ways other than winning a prize – the promise of romance, quick and effective health cures or cheap rental accommodation, to name a few.
The end result is the same – the consumer will not receive the money, love, cure or accommodation that was promised.
Due to the availability, and speed, of modern technology, consumers can be contacted from anywhere in the world. Australian authorities, including those in the ACT, are generally unable to locate international fraudsters. The chance of recovery of any money is, therefore, extremely slim.
Remember, IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT PROBABLY IS, so think very carefully before acting on any offer that sounds too good to be true.
Other tips to avoid being scammed:
• Research the person, the company and the offer.
• Do not send large amounts of money to pay for something you have not actually seen (e.g. a car).
• Be wary of any request to send money overseas by Western Union or similar money transfer services.
• Be wary of any internet or mail relationship if the person starts asking for money.
• Only give out your personal details if it is absolutely necessary and if you have initiated the contact and trust the other party.
• Treat your personal details as carefully as you treat your money.
To find out more about “Think Fraud!”, scams in general, and ways to protect yourself, visit www.scamwatch.gov.au
If you have been the victim of a scam, or suspect a scam is circulating in Canberra, contact the Office of Regulatory Services (Fair Trading) on
6207 3000.
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