Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is again to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. I refer the minister to his last answer, in which he said employment agreements were a matter for employers and employees. Why then does the government require AWAs to be lodged at the Office of the Employment Advocate?

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They are lodged to ensure that they comply with the law. The protections we have put in place in the legislation are there to protect employees. I make this point: the Deputy Leader of the Opposition wants to see every AWA. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition and her union mates want to have a look at every employment agreement between the employer and the employee. That is exactly the way they do it. Greg Combet belled the cat this week when he said that the agreements they were opposed to are not only AWAs but also non-union agreements. The trade union movement wants to be there for every negotiation between an employer and an employee.

We believe in freedom of choice. We believe in the opportunity for the individual to control their own destiny. We believe that individuals have the capacity to negotiate on their own behalf in a whole range of areas: buying a house, buying a car, entering into an employment contract and even raising children. We believe that individuals have the capacity to undertake those sorts of responsibilities, and we do not believe the union movement should have a role in every workplace agreement.