A record number of Victorians have taken part in consultation on the Allan Labor Government’s proposed work from home laws, with more than 18,000 submissions already received.
Premier Jacinta Allan and Treasurer Jaclyn Symes joined Melbourne worker Lana Dennis, who benefits from flexible arrangements, to announce that 18,448 people have participated so far. Another 122 businesses have signed up to industry forums beginning this week.
According to the government, the Have Your Say: Working From Home survey is one of the largest online consultation efforts run by any state government. It broke records on Engage Victoria for both speed and number of submissions, with more than 1,000 responses in the first two hours and 5,000 on the first day. At the peak, eight to nine submissions were coming in each minute.
The strongest responses so far have come from residents in Point Cook, Truganina, Roxburgh Park, Wyndham Vale, Sandhurst, Clyde, Berwick, Mernda, Reservoir and Redan. With consultation still open for another month, the government is encouraging more workers and employers to contribute.
To reach a wider audience, the survey has been translated into Hindi, Punjabi, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, Greek and Italian.
The proposed laws would give Victorians the right to work from home at least two days a week if their job can reasonably be done remotely, whether in the public or private sector. The consultation is not asking if work from home should be a right, but how best to apply the rules across different types and sizes of businesses.
Premier Jacinta Allan said: “Victorians are leaping at the chance to have their say about work from home – and we’re listening.”
She added: “Over the last few years, we’ve heard a lot about what big business thinks of work from home, but we haven’t heard enough about what workers think. That’s what this survey is all about.”
Minister for Industrial Relations Jaclyn Symes said the response confirmed the issue’s importance to families and the wider economy. “Work from home works for families and its good for the economy,” she said.
“A record number of Victorians have had their say – that just shows how important working from home is to so many Victorians.”
Victorians can make submissions until 28 September at engage.vic.gov.au/wfh.
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