Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am here to raise the issue of the proposed closure of the Australia Post Northgate Mail Centre in Brisbane, a facility that I was proud to open on 28 April 1993. In the 13 years since it was opened, the centre has grown into a profitable and serviceable facility and is of tremendous importance to its surrounding community. It has been brought to my attention that Australia Post has plans to close and move the Northgate Mail Centre 50 kilometres to the south. This is an issue of very significant concern to me and of great importance to the 500 staff who currently work at the centre.

I am informed that the plans are well advanced and that Australia Post has not had the courtesy to brief the local member—or it has taken the deliberate decision not to brief the local member—about these plans. I am particularly concerned about the impact on the workforce—approximately 500 people—many of whom are part-time staff and many of whom are working mothers. These employees are not necessarily in a position to easily relocate; indeed, for many of them it will simply be impossible. The Northgate Mail Centre is a stable and convenient workplace for these people and the proposed move would be to the detriment of their working and family lives.

I am at a loss to understand why Australia Post wants to move, given the current location of the centre. The centre sits in close proximity to the Gateway Arterial Road, Brisbane Airport and the port of Brisbane. The centre sits at the geographic heart of Greater Brisbane, an area with a growing population of over 1.75 million. It lies at the centre, or the apex, if you like, of the southern Queensland transport infrastructure. It is a modern facility that is poised to take future advantage of a growing market in a growing area. It is currently accessible, profitable and extremely successful, both as a business and as a place of employment for many. So the proposed move of the Northgate Mail Centre, which will see it relocated at Yatala, 50 kilometres to the south, is simply not good logic in my view. Australia Post has not taken the time to explain the economics of such a move. The consequence of that is that many of the current employees are alarmed and worried about their future.

Such a move would have devastating consequences for many of the employees. To begin with, there would be the daily commute from the Brisbane area of something like 100 kilometres. Many of the employees currently live to the north and to the west. For them, the commute would be much longer. So I do not understand why Australia Post is going to take a decision which will have such a dramatic impact on its workforce and could lead to, in effect, the summary dismissal of a large number of workers who would simply not be in a position to uproot their families and engage in the sort of commute that Australia Post expects them to do. Indeed, for many part-time workers, particularly married women, that would simply be impossible. Australia Post is moving to use part-time workers more and more, and it simply would not be economical for anyone who is a part-time worker to engage in such a long commute.

That is before you begin to discuss access to the essential services that enable people to mix their working and family lives, such as child-care facilities and public transport. The proposed move to the south would see those working at this facility without any access to child-care facilities or public transport. Indeed, the new centre will simply be located away from all of these essential facilities, which are so necessary for any business that is a large employer of labour. Australia Post is yet to outline how it proposes to cope with those challenges in the event that most of the workers are unable to move. Many workers, if they were inclined to follow Australia Post that far south, would require a second car. They would be looking for a lot of assistance with transport. As I said before, this does not take into account the devastating effects on the work-life balance, which is so important these days to the productivity of the workforce. I fail to understand why Australia Post is engaged in this move. I fail to understand why there has been no consultation with me, the local member. I serve notice on Australia Post that, if it continues to go down this route, it will meet fierce opposition.