Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise in this place today to categorically state how bitterly disgusted I am with this government. But why would I be surprised? This is the government that championed Work Choices. This sitting week the Turnbull government had not one but two chances to save the take-home pay of 700,000 Australians, and yet they voted in favour of cutting workers' penalty rates, showing once again their complete and utter disregard for low-income workers.

In my electorate of Herbert 13,142 workers will have their take-home pay cut as of 1 July this year. That is one in six workers in my community. In a city where unemployment is at 11.3 per cent and our youth unemployment at 21.7 per cent, this decision is morally bankrupt. There are single people and families in my community that rely on their penalty rates each week to put bread on the table. It is scandalous that casual retail workers will see their Sunday penalty rates fall from 200 per cent to 175 per cent. Full- and part-time hospitality workers will also experience a pay cut from 175 per cent to 150 per cent. Fast food and part-time workers will experience pay cuts from 175 per cent to 150 per cent. At a time where inequality is at an all-time high, wages are declining and the cost of living is going up, the Turnbull government has failed to protect our most vulnerable workers, many of whom are women and single mothers.

This is a government that is happy to see a tax cut of $16,400 for millionaires on 1 July, followed by a take-home pay cut for our low-paid workers. I think it is absolutely appalling to hear members of the Turnbull government say they support workers when clearly they do not. I say to them: actions speak louder than words, and the 700,000 workers who will now receive a pay cut will not forget this unconscionable decision come the next election. There is no point being a lion for workers in your electorate and a coward in Canberra, but that is what some government members are choosing to be.

The member for Gilmore, for example, has said that she has concerns about the cuts to penalty rates, but when it comes to the vote for the third time the member for Gilmore voted with the government against Labor's amendment to support these workers. The Turnbull government are supporting cuts to penalty rates whilst they are increasing taxes for workers under $87,000. This is outrageous. For a government that is consistently spruiking about jobs and growth, they have failed to understand that cutting vulnerable workers' take-home pay will definitely reduce the cash flow in local communities and hurt small business. There is nothing fair about giving a tax cut to millionaires and cutting the penalty rates for low-income workers.

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