The ACTU has fired its first salvo at new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, calling on him to stop the Coalition's "attacks" on conditions such as penalty rates and paid parental leave.
In rare public comments by a member of the Fair Work Commission, Vice-President Michael Lawler has rejected allegations or imputations of wrongdoing against him as "demonstrably false and malicious".
With Employment Minister Eric Abetz signalling he intends to cold-call, rather than advertise, to fill Fair Work Commission vacancies, the AMMA is today arguing it is people with employer backgrounds whose numbers he should be dialling.