Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

As we all know, the Albanese Labor government was elected on a commitment to get wages moving and to ensure that our workers are treated fairly and justly. Addressing the loopholes that have long undermined wages and working conditions in this country is essential to achieve this.

The cornerstone of our efforts is in the suites of comprehensive workplace relations reforms that this government has introduced since the commencement of its term. The reforms in this bill are not radical changes, no matter how much the scaremongering by those opposite would lead you to believe so. Instead, they aim to make the current law work more effectively, ensuring fairness and providing a level playing field for both businesses and workers.

Let me break down the four key elements of these reforms. First, we are determined to crack down on labour hire loopholes that have been used to undercut pay and conditions for far too long. This practice is detrimental to both workers and the broader economy. It's time we hold those responsible accountable and ensure that negotiated rates are paid as agreed upon.

Second, we are committed to criminalising wage theft. No worker should ever have to worry about being underpaid or not receiving compensation they rightfully deserve. Strengthening the enforcement of existing rates of pay is essential for maintaining the integrity of our workforce.

Third, we aim to properly define 'casual work' so that casuals aren't being exploited. Our new definition of 'casual employment' clarifies the intended nature of casual work. If you are working regular and predictable hours and desire a permanent position, you should have that pathway available to you. It's about fairness and ensuring that those who want stability have the opportunity to achieve it.

Lastly, we are dedicated to ensuring gig workers aren't being ripped off. The gig economy is an integral part of our modern workforce. We must ensure that these workers are afforded the same rights and protections as any other employee. It's about creating a level playing field for all workers, regardless of their job type.

It's important to note that we announced all four of these policies while in opposition, over two years ago, and took them to the Australian people at the 2022 election.

We have extensively consulted with business groups to refine these measures, but we will not be deterred from delivering on our election promises. These reforms strengthen our current workplace relations framework, providing certainty and fairness. They are about ensuring that workers are not taken advantage of and that businesses can thrive in an environment where everyone plays by the same rules.

In addition to the promises we took to the election, this bill includes a host of other changes that will help workers and unions make sure businesses are doing the right thing. This includes minimum standards for the road transport industry; introducing an industrial manslaughter offence and increasing penalties; new protections for workplace delegates; exemption certificates for suspected underpayment; right of entry; making it unlawful to discriminate against an employee who is or was subject to family and domestic violence; clarifying that Fair Work Ombudsman compliance notices can require an employer to calculate the amount of an underpayment that is owed to an employee; and allowing supported bargaining and single-interest employer agreements to be replaced by single-enterprise agreements.

As a former union delegate and organiser, I could speak about the reforms enshrined in this bill and how they will deliver a better future for every Australian till well into the night. However, in the interest of time, I will focus on a few reforms that are important to those in my electorate and relate to my previous life in the union movement. I am particularly pleased with the reforms to gig economy work contained in this bill. We can't continue to have a situation where the 21st-century technology of gig platforms comes with 19th-century conditions. Many of us here constantly hear stories of people, many of whom are relatively young, being killed due to the demanding pressures placed on them by the platforms they are contracted with. Even if saved from such extreme conditions, the nature of this employment constantly leaves them on the edge. By extending the powers of the Fair Work Commission to include employee-like forms of work, the government will be able to better protect people in new forms of work from exploitation and dangerous working conditions.

This change will allow the Fair Work Commission to make orders for minimum standards for new forms of work, such as gig work. At present, employee-like workers performing work through a digital platform are often engaged as independent contractors, meaning they do not receive rights and entitlements under the Fair Work Act. Unfortunately, several inquiries have highlighted that some of these workers can receive less pay than they would if they were paid under the award safety net, and they would have no protection if they were to lose their work unfairly.

The reforms contained in this bill will mean the Fair Work Commission can set minimum standards for independent contractors who perform work via digital platforms and who have one or more employee-like characteristics, such as low bargaining power, low authority over their work, or payment at or below the rate of comparable employees. This means a digital labour platform, a registered organisation or the minister can make an application for an employee-like minimum standards order, which can include payment terms, deductions, insurance and cost recovery. The Fair Work Commission may also set standards on its own initiative. Workers will also be able to negotiate for conditions more beneficial than the minimum standards, as the bill provides for a new, consent-based collective agreement-making framework that will allow unions representing employee-like workers to make collective agreements with digital labour platforms.

Finally, thanks to this bill, gig economy workers will not continue to be treated as though they can simply be disposed of. Employee-like workers will have new protections from unfair deactivation if they have been working for a digital labour platform regularly for six months.

In particular, they may apply to the Fair Work Commission to seek a remedy if they consider their deactivation unfair, and Fair Work will be able to order reinstatement.

Nearly seven per cent of my electorate work in the transport, postal and warehousing industry, with a large chunk of them employed in road transport. At present, the road transport industry faces a set of challenges that threaten its very existence. Unsustainable business practices and increasing commercial pressures jeopardise the livelihoods of those who depend on this industry for their income. I am pleased that the reforms in this bill implement a Jobs and Skills Summit outcome to empower the Fair Work Commission to set fair minimum standards to ensure the road transport industry is safe, sustainable and viable. Notably, similar to the reform outlined above, a road transport business, a union representing road transport contractors or a business, or the minister can make an application for the road transport minimum standards order.

The bill will also include comprehensive guardrails to govern how the Fair Work Commission is to perform its functions. This includes the requirement to balance a number of competing factors outlined in a new minimum standards objective and a road transport objective when considering the making of the standards. Fair Work's policy will be informed by an expert panel for the road transport industry that will be established within the commission. This will ensure it has the appropriate expertise and ability to set the minimum standards for the road transport industry.

Some of you may know that I joined the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association, or the SDA, the union for workers in retail, fast food, and warehousing, when I was just 15 years old. While I worked at Woolies for 15 years, I also served as a delegate or a shop steward for nearly a decade. This experience was rewarding. It gave me the opportunity to be a shoulder for my friends at work and be the first point of contact when things turned sour. Delegates play a crucial role in assisting their colleagues to understand their rights and entitlements, navigate the work relations framework and engage productively with employers.

The reforms enshrined in this bill will implement a Jobs and Skills Summit outcome to improve employee access to representation for workplace safety and compliance issues. This bill will amend the Fair Work Act to provide clear rights and protections for workplace delegates. The new measures will provide general protections for delegates from employers who are unreasonably refusing to deal with them, misleading them or hindering and obstructing the exercise of their rights as delegates. The workplace delegates will also be provided with specific rights to represent the industrial interests of current and potential union members and to represent them in disputes with the employer. To support these rights, delegates will also have reasonable access to workplace facilities and paid time to undertake workplace delegate related training and communicate with current and potential members about matters of industrial concern.

In addition, the Fair Work Commission will be required to prepare modern award terms outlining rights for delegates to represent workers and to ensure that these rights are appropriately adapted for particular industries and occupations. In doing so, the commission will have the capacity to accommodate different expectations across industries, workplaces and employer sizes. I am pleased that it will be mandatory for all modern awards and future enterprise agreements to include a term giving effect to delegates' rights.

I have had the honour of sharing with this esteemed chamber the comprehensive workplace relation reforms that our Albanese Labor government is committed to. These reforms are not radical changes but necessary steps to make our current laws work more effectively, ensuring fairness and levelling the playing field for both businesses and workers.

These measures are about creating a fair and just workplace for every Australian. As someone who has dedicated a significant part of their life to the union movement and advocating for workers' rights, I am especially delighted by the measures in this bill that enhance employee access to representation and protection for workplace delegates. These provisions will strengthen the voices of workers and their advocates in the workplace.

In closing, these reforms are a testament to our commitment to building a fairer and more just Australia for everyone. We will continue to engage in extensive consultation and remain steadfast in delivering on the promises we make to the Australian people. Together, we will create a future where workers are not taken for granted, businesses thrive and everyone follows the same laws. I commend this bill to the House.

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