Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

What does this new Prime Minister think about penalty rates? On 11 March on the ABC Mr Turnbull said:

You see businesses, particularly hospitality businesses, like cafes, restaurants and so forth, closed on weekends when they should be doing brisk business because penalty rates are so high the owners cannot make ends meet.

Now that is just nuts. I will tell you what is nuts. The fact that this Prime Minister does not understand that cutting penalty rates cuts people's take-home pay, meaning that these low-paid workers will not be able to pay for their kid's basketball and will not be able to pay their rent. What this new Prime Minister does not understand is that by cutting penalty rates you hurt some of the lowest paid workers in our regional communities. What this Prime Minister also does not understand is the division he is creating in these workplaces.

Just last Friday in Gosford a small business owner said that she thinks this debate is just nuts. For her paying penalty rates on a Sunday is less than two per cent of her turnover. She is quite happy to pay penalty rates because it means she gets good quality staff who are committed to working for her business on Sunday. This government and this new Prime Minister are just nuts, and the Australian people know it and will say so soon.

See this speech in context