Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Manufacturing) Share this | Hansard source

There is nothing wrong with picking fruit, if it is practical and possible for you to do so. The reality is that it not always is. The member for Shortland touched on this. There are often family circumstances where people cannot leave home or should not leave home because they are in some way contributing to the household from which they come. A good example of that is a young person living at home who partially cares for one or both of the parents in that home. The young person does not get paid for it but without that care that household could not continue. I have spoken to people who fit that very category.

I have another example and I say it to the member opposite who interjected: if you had a young daughter and you were living in South Australia and there was a fruit-picking job going in Western Australia or Queensland, would you suggest to her, 'Look, just leave home, get your backpack and go there to pick fruit.' I certainly would not ask my daughter to do that if she did not feel comfortable doing so, yet my daughter may well be one of these people who is genuinely looking for a job. It is not always possible or practical for these people to simply go and pick fruit or do those kinds of jobs. Quite frankly, that kind of heartless comment is based on nothing but ignorance and arrogance.

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