Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I was listening intently to the minister as he said that there would be organisations that would broker partnerships for this program. I would like to directly ask the minister: which organisations will broker this program? Are they the same organisations that were completely decimated by the 2014 budget when the then Treasurer Mr Hockey stood up and announced that he would no longer continue the very successful brokerage partnership programs that had been occurring and which saw many young people find work. After that, we saw an increase in joblessness with our young people. That was a direct result of what this government did to absolutely eliminate and annihilate those fantastic programs that were working and that this government did not support and did not continue.

We on this side understand that youth unemployment truly is a scourge in our society and it is vital that we all work together to create the best environment that we can for our young people to get a job. We welcome additional resources being invested in youth employment, but I am convinced, as is Labor, that this Youth Jobs PaTH, as it stands, is not the best way to support young jobseekers or invest Commonwealth funds. It is not a pathway to employment, but, rather, a road to nowhere in my assessment.

The amendment that Labor proposes seeks guarantees that this legislation will not be used to exploit young people or to undermine workforce standards. As the member for Mayo pointed out, these young people are so keen to impress. They really are desperate for those jobs. How will they not be exploited? We have all been in situations where you might stay back for those extra couple of hours when you are trying your best to get an absolutely great opportunity. How will we ensure that these young people will not be exploited? We have real concerns about whether this actually presents a genuine opportunity for young people to gain meaningful employment or whether it is just going to be completely unworkable.

There is no firm definition of what an intern is under the program or what sectors they could be asked to work in. Large numbers of participants could be used within companies at one time, as we have already pointed out. There is a distinct difference between companies and the organisations that brokered programs in the past, as was pointed out earlier in the day. Also, large numbers of these interns could completely negate the need for existing employees in certain sectors, such as hospitality. And, as my colleague just pointed out, the penalty rate issue is one of the most glaring ones. What is going to cover someone who should be paid the appropriate penalty rates for being away from their family on a weekend, as opposed to an intern being brought in and being taken advantage of? These are real and genuine concerns that we have.

At a time when wages growth is at its lowest on record, there are very real concerns that the Youth Jobs PaTH program could be used to undermine wages across many industries. It will not be just young people and would-be workers who will suffer but all workers in lower-paying jobs who would be forced to compete with what is, virtually, slave labour. The Youth Jobs PaTH program does not specify real job areas in which jobseekers will acquire skills. All we have been told is that these programs will give young people the skills that employers tell us that they need. We need to know what these skills are. What are they? How will it work? I still want to know the definition of an intern. I want to know what they will be doing and I want to know what, more importantly, they will be learning. I want to know how this government can guarantee that it will not depress wages and I want the government to guarantee that it will not displace jobs.

I also want the government to guarantee that it will provide vital access to workers' compensation. It is no good saying, 'Everything will be okay; they will be safe and we would not put anything in place that would put anyone in a dire situation.' Well, I may be new but I am not quite that naive. We want to see this properly accounted for. The safety of our young people should be legislated. This government has an appalling record when it comes to helping young people. Apprenticeship numbers have been absolutely in freefall for the past three years. We have had the VET scheme; we have had Work for the Dole, which has not worked out well; and, I guarantee, in a few years we will be hearing how this has not worked out as well. These answers must be found.

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