Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. Would the minister remind the House how the government’s workplace relations legislation will boost employment and protect employees? Are there any alternative policies?

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Indi for her question, because we have been hearing these false and hysterical claims from those opposite and from the union movement about how Work Choices is cutting wages for Australian workers. So I was very interested to read a report this morning in the West Australian newspaper which says that the John Holland construction group will be offering employment contracts to 180 individual workers on a building site in Port Hedland using a new provision in the work choices legislation. Indeed, John Holland’s Port Hedland agreement delivers pay rates which, according to the report, are among the highest in the booming north-west ‘with unskilled labourers to collect $2,700, including allowances, for a 60-hour week’. That is, $2,700 for unskilled labourers under this agreement. That would not have been possible prior to Monday, because it is as a result of the work choices legislation. Indeed, in another report about this, a spokesman for John Holland in the Australian Financial Review is quoting as saying:

It’s quite intentionally not trying to undermine—

Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Treasury) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms King interjecting

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is interesting how they do not want to hear the good news. Mr Sasse, a spokesman for John Holland, said:

It’s quite intentionally not trying to undermine existing market conditions and you’d be a bloody fool to try and do it because no one would come and work for you.

That is reflecting, of course, on the contraction in the growth of the workforce because of the ageing of the population. Here is an example of a big business operator in Australia—one of the major construction companies in Australia—taking on more workers under a new provision in the work choices legislation and paying them as unskilled labourers some $2,700 a week. The advantage of Work Choices is not just for major employees.

Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Brendan O’Connor interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Gorton is warned!

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We heard on the Channel 10 News on Monday evening from the store manager of Sumo Salad, a small business, who said:

We can provide a lot of productivity and performance based incentives. We can convert part-time people into more permanent positions so we can improve our service. Our staff are a lot happier. We guarantee some work on the roster. We guarantee some weekend work.

Here you have two examples of businesses, in one case large business and in the other case small business, saying, ‘We can take on more workers and we can pay them adequately’—in fact, in the case of John Holland, up to $2,700.

Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Beazley interjecting

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition is interjecting. This was a party that once pretended to represent the working people of Australia. The reality is they have abandoned that. I am always reminded of that famous statement by the father of the Leader of the Opposition, who said that, when he came into politics, the Labor Party represented the cream of the working class in Australia and, when he left it, it represented the dregs of the middle class. That is what he said—the father of Leader of the Opposition. I wonder whom he had in mind. The reality is that Work Choices, in just these two examples, is delivering real benefits to real Australian workers—the people that the Labor Party once pretended it represented.

Stephen Smith (Perth, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Industry, Infrastructure and Industrial Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is again to the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Revenue and follows on from my earlier questions. Is it not the case that the AWA presented by the government to an Australian Valuation Office valuer at executive level 2 zone 3 would see a $17,000 reduction in annual salary when compared—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Standing order 98(c) says:

A Minister can only be questioned on the following matters, for which he or she is responsible or officially connected:

(i)

public affairs;

(ii)

administration; or

(iii)

proceedings pending in the House.

That question may be applicable to another minister, but it is not in order for this minister to be asked it.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am listening carefully to question by the member for Perth.

Stephen Smith (Perth, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Industry, Infrastructure and Industrial Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is it not the case that the AWA presented by the government to an Australian Valuation Office valuer at executive level 2 zone 3 would see a $17,000 reduction in annual salary when compared with the current union negotiated certified agreement? Minister, isn’t this the real reason why the government is denying its own employees real choice?

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question relates to the administration of the minister. It is in order. I call the Minister for Revenue and Assistant Treasurer.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Revenue and Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Again I thank the member opposite for his question. I have received some initial advice from my office and that is that, at the very least, the member opposite is telling a very small part of the story. When looked at with all of the facts, I think we will see that he may well have something to retract at the end of it.