Joanna Gash (Gilmore, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To many the steelworks at Port Kembla near Wollongong is a positive symbol of the economic fortunes of the Illawarra. Yet the term Illawarra is rather fluid, sometimes including the Shoalhaven and Wingecarribee yet at other times excluding them from the equation. I can point to many examples of the Shoalhaven missing out, such as when the government is handing out cash to what they describe as the Illawarra. I missed out on being invited to Kevin Rudd’s Illawarra jobs summit on that basis and perhaps on the fact that I would be the only Liberal politician attending. So let me talk about the Illawarra in the context of the Prime Minister’s jobs summit descriptor.

About 25 years ago, the Port Kembla Steelworks directly employed about 23,000 people. That figure did not include the hundreds of thousands of downstream jobs that were organic to the steelworks. The steelworks formed the hub of the region’s fortunes and the union movement reigned supreme. Their influence spread into all aspects of the local political scene and it seemed they had a say in everything that went on. Their reputation for militancy was renowned throughout Australia and the steelworks industry was, to some extent, hostage to it. The now defunct Federated Iron Workers Union dominated Illawarra’s industrial landscape. It has now morphed into the CFMEU. The steelworks now employ about a tenth of their 1980s workforce. Many, if not all of the Illawarra’s politicians past and present are beholden to the union movement. The union mentored them, financed them, supported them and in the end they owned them.

The Illawarra has been under the control of Labor and the unions for over half a century thanks largely to a union culture that thrived in a heavy industry setting. But heavy industry in the Illawarra has been in decline since the heady days of the last century and, until the introduction of the fair work legislation last year, the union movement had also been in decline. But now they have been thrown a lifeline. The Illawarra in the 21st century has changed and is looking for direction, a direction that is not being provided by its Labor politicians. They are living in the past and are bereft of ideas to manage the change that sits in their collective laps. Just look at the state of New South Wales after 15 years of Labor. They continue to rely on a political culture that has reached its use-by date.

The latest employment figures for the Illawarra succinctly illustrate the political inertia under which the Illawarra labours. Job data released just last week shows a rise in the unemployment rate in the Illawarra from 6.3 per cent in December to 7.6 per cent. In contrast, the average unemployment rate for New South Wales fell from 5.9 per cent to 5.6 per cent. In December 2009, the Illawarra Mercury ran an opinion piece by Sue Baker-Finch which started:

Unemployment in the Illawarra has nudged 10 per cent this year—

2009—

and remains well above the national figures. No-one would disagree that the region needs more jobs.

Despite the fact that the Illawarra is represented by Labor at both the federal and state levels, how can it be that the region is defying the state and national employment trends? A number of Illawarra state Labor politicians hold or have held ministerial portfolios, yet the unemployment rate continues to defy gravity. Two of the Illawarra’s sacked councils were Labor dominated yet the unemployment rate continued to defy gravity.

To give credit where credit is due, the Illawarra has had some fine representatives and they have done good work for the Illawarra. I have even dealt with some fantastic union organisers, but they were not into power politics—they were genuinely interested in their members. But times have changed and the culture that grew around the steelworks is well and truly behind us. The Illawarra needs to move on and again signs are emerging that, at least in some sectors, this is happening but in a small way. For this to occur it cannot be handicapped by outdated notions of industrial relations which need to be consigned to the past. People have a right to work. Far too much power and influence is still wielded by the trade union movement which is not justified.

The Illawarra Business Chamber said last week that what was needed was a dedicated economic development unit to drive the change. I support that idea because I have seen the concept work well elsewhere. Shoalhaven City Council has a very good economic development unit. We also had a very good area consultative committee that achieved quite a great deal in its time. Unfortunately, the government saw fit to pull the plug and now there is a vacuum as the newly installed RDAs struggle to find their feet. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that small business will create the jobs growth we need in the areas like the Illawarra. People demand and have a right to work, but it cannot work in an environment controlled by vested political interests of people who have outworn their welcome.

I say all this because Gilmore is being pushed up into the Illawarra and I will be contesting the seat. The Illawarra, struggling with change, needs encouragement, flexibility, cooperation and entrepreneurship. A perfect illustration of the need to break out and let go of the forces that hold the Illawarra back was presented by BlueScope Steel’s Managing Director and CEO, Paul O’Malley, in a statement last week. He said:

… the co-generation plant planned for the Port Kembla Steelworks depends on the Federal Government’s carbon tax … and the company’s ability to reinvest in co-generation and will depend on the costs it has to pay—(Time expired)