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

Today the case numbers are in for Bendigo and we have 24 new COVID cases. We all here wish them well, and hope that they have a speedy recovery. But these 24 cases have close contacts and they're now in isolation. These close contacts could be schoolchildren, and those schools could now be closed and going through a deep clean. Those schoolchildren could be in isolation and their parents could be in isolation. If these parents are workers in isolation or quarantine due to COVID-19, that means no work.

For millions of workers around the country that means no pay. Why? Because this government is winding back the paid pandemic leave disaster payment at the time when we're opening up and at the time when millions of workers could be forced into quarantine at a moment's notice. Why are they going into quarantine? To keep their co-workers safe and to keep their community safe. We want no worker to have to choose between putting food on the table and keeping their co-workers and their community safe. I urge the government to rethink what they're doing. Paid pandemic leave at least gave people a payment if they didn't have annual leave. They really need to listen to workers and to the union movement and consider paid isolation leave. We need this entitlement when we open up so that no worker and no family is in a position where they have to choose pay and food over the health of their family and community. (Time expired)

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