House debates

Thursday, 19 June 2008

Matters of Public Importance

Job Security

4:22 pm

Photo of Greg CombetGreg Combet (Charlton, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Procurement) Share this | Hansard source

You brought in a system that exposed 3.7 million people; all employees of businesses with fewer than 100 employees had their unfair dismissal protection removed. What was the result? People lost their job security. That system did not create jobs; it exposed people to indiscriminate and unfair treatment by their employers. If you have not learnt that, you have not learnt much from the last election. The strength of the rejection by the Australian community of your attack on their job security was what led to your defeat in the election. And that is only one element of your Work Choices legislation from which you have learnt no lessons. You put the safety net up for grabs at the bargaining table, and those in the most vulnerable positions were exposed to having their employment conditions removed and their jobs casualised. If you understood what job security was for Australian working people—

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