John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Deakin for his question. The member is of course the chairman of the government members committee dealing with issues of workplace relations and he has a very long and continuing  interest in workplace relations. I was asked yesterday by the member for Jagajaga about workers being stood down at the Teys Bros meatworks in Naracoorte in South Australia. The member for Jagajaga suggested in her question that 260 Australian workers at the meatworks had had their employment reduced to four days a week with a reduction in pay because of a shortage of stock. She also suggested that overseas workers brought to Australia on temporary 457 visas are being given enough slaughter work and extra work, such as night cleaning, to get them a full working week in order to meet their visa requirements. I indicated yesterday that I was not personally aware of the facts of this matter and that I would seek to check them, as long experience has told me not to automatically accept what is put to me in this place. I am therefore very pleased to inform the House that I have had an opportunity to check the facts and to get some advice and on this occasion the suggestions made by the Deputy Leader of the Opposition are completely wrong.

I am advised that Teys Bros employs its Australian and overseas workers on the same Australian workplace agreements. Consistent with the normal practice for this industry, the AWAs of both Australian and foreign workers alike include provisions where workers can be legally stood down on days where there is insufficient work, and where this occurs both Australian and foreign workers are stood down and they are not paid. There is no discrimination, I am told, between the Australian and foreign workers—which is directly contrary to what was suggested by the member for Jagajaga—and that is what happened in this case.

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