Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

I seek leave to move the following motion:

That so much of the standing orders be suspended as would prevent the government business order of the day relating to a Bill for an Act to amend the Fair Work Act 2009, and for related purposes (Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Take-Home Pay) Bill 2017) being called on immediately, being given priority over all other business for passage through all stages, the Member for Gorton being called to move that the bill be now read a second time, and, if consideration of the bill has not concluded by 5.30 pm on 13 June 2017, any necessary questions to complete consideration of the bill being put without delay.

Leave not granted.

I move:

That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the government business order of day relating to a bill for an act to amend the Fair Work Act 2009 and for related purposes being called on immediately and being given priority over all other business for passage through all stages and the member for Gorton being called on to move that the bill be now read a second time.

This bill must be called on because this is an important matter. This is a matter of national importance. If this bill is passed in this place today the penalty rates decision handed down by the Fair Work Commission in February will be quashed, which will mean that 700,000 workers in this country will not lose penalty rates. We have heard a lot from those on the other side talking about fairness. In fact they decided to hand down a budget arguing that it was a fair budget. That budget, of course, imposed taxes on all workers under $87,000 a year and gave a $16,400 tax cut to millionaires. Yet here is a bill that will provide relief for workers in this country by quashing an order of the Fair Work Commission, therefore enabling them to be given decent remuneration.

In the last three months we have seen this Prime Minister, and indeed this government, choosing to support a decision that will cause very difficult hardship for too many workers in this country. Hospitality workers, retail workers and other workers are losing conditions of employment and rates of pay as a result of that decision. We saw only last week the Commission decide to start the cuts on 1 July. In 18 days we are going to see people lose real money. We are going to see the Prime Minister provide support for a decision that will see the cutting of wages of hundreds of thousands of workers across the country.

There is no point in the members opposite saying they support workers in this country when here they have an opportunity, for once in their lives, to defend workers and to support workers' conditions of employment, indeed to support the current rates of pay that are in awards so that they will not be affected by that Fair Work decision. It is a simple bill. By the way, this bill has already passed the Senate. All it will take now is a vote for this bill in this place and we will have legislation that will prevent the cuts to penalty rates for too many of our fellow Australians.

We are at a time when wage growth in this country is lower than at any time in a generation. We have wage growth going backwards. The ABS data came out three weeks ago showing that wages are falling in real terms. Add to that the effect of this decision by the Fair Work Commission, and you will have further erosion of people's conditions of employment, further erosion of rates of pay. The same people, by the way, will have to pay increased taxes as a result of the budget that was announced by the Treasurer a few weeks ago.

This is a choice for the government. It can support the bill that has passed the Senate and has been introduced into this place. It can support a bill that has been supported by Labor from the outset and support those workers, or it can repudiate those workers and turn its back on hundreds of thousands of workers in this country. Every member opposite has thousands of workers in their electorates who will be affected by this decision. It will not end there. One important part of this bill is the fact that this will not allow the Fair Work Commission to make similar decisions that will change awards to cut penalty rates. At the moment we are talking about hospitality workers and retail workers, but of course there are already other matters before the commission. Clubs Australia is looking to vary its award to change the conditions of employment. We have the hairdressers' award being sought for amendment, which would cut the wages of some of the lowest-paid workers in this country. Indeed, there is no protection for other workers in other awards. Nurses, emergency workers, other workers that are regulated by federal awards could find themselves in a position to have their awards up before the Fair Work Commission to have their wages cut.

That can all change. We have a motion, moved by myself and seconded by the Manager of Opposition Business, to bring forward a bill that will prevent the effect of the Fair Work decision and ensure that future decisions of the Fair Work Commission cannot cut the wages of workers in this country.

The Prime Minister likes to talk about fairness. He has had focus groups telling him what to say about fairness. Here is his chance. We have a bill, introduced into this parliament, that has been passed by the Senate. It will take only the passing of this bill to ensure that we have the change of law required to quash the order determined by the Fair Work Commission. They have to decide this. We have had a few members of the government suggest that they want to entertain the thought of supporting this bill. Where is the member for Dawson? Where is the member for Gilmore? They have said they are going to support this. There is no point going to your electorate and saying you are going to support penalty rates if, when you come back into this place and have your first opportunity to support a bill that will do exactly that, you choose not to vote for it. I expect the member for Dawson, the member for Gilmore and other members of the government to cross the floor now, if the Prime Minister does not have the guts to support these workers, and come here and support this bill.

This bill, if passed, will ensure that workers in this country, suffering the lowest wage growth in a generation, suffering tax increases by this government, will get some relief. If government members choose not to support this bill then I think it is fair for everyone to conclude that this government has no regard for workers in this country, has no concern about the cost of living pressures and has no concern that workers cannot afford to pay for petrol, put food on the table, pay the rent or pay the mortgage. If they fail to support this motion today, they will stand condemned as a government totally out of touch with Australian workers, those people they pretend to look after when they go back to their electorates. The time is now. The Prime Minister and the government should support this proposed legislation. In doing so there will be relief for workers. It would show that they might stand up for workers for once in their life, but I have to say, given the history of this government and the callous disregard from the Prime Minister, I will not hold my breath.

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