Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

we did say to them that they needed to get this dispute fixed in the interests of the nation. Every step of the way we have shown the appropriate balance between the interests of working people and the interests of the employer. And, of course, when we moved on Saturday we were motivated by keeping balance in industrial relations, by making sure we were doing what we needed to do to protect the national economy and in the interests of members of the travelling public who were stranded miles and miles away from work or home, where they needed to get to.

Contrast that with the approach of the Leader of the Opposition. He is always on the radio full of words of criticism about militant unions, but we see an employer lock its workforce out, we see planes grounded around the country with basically no notice to members of the travelling public—we see an employer take that extreme action—and the Leader of the Opposition cannot bring himself to utter one word of criticism of Qantas. Well, we know why that is. It is Liberal Party philosophy, it is fused into their DNA, it is what built Work Choices—and that is, if they ever need to look at a situation in a workplace their only question is: 'How much can I do to help the boss, what can I do to hurt the workers?' That is all they ever have believed in and all they ever will believe in.

See this speech in context