George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Australian culture dictates everyone deserves a fair go and that cultural belief is reflected in anti-discrimination legislation.

But what is happening now in the mining communities of Central and North Queensland is anything but a fair go.

The 100 per cent fly-in fly-out workforce practices at Daunia and Caval Ridge mines have devastated local communities.

Highly skilled and experienced local workers are locked out of local employment opportunities because they live too close to work.

For example, a search for Mackay and the Coalfields jobs on Seek this morning reveals a number of jobs available, such as this advertisement for a production superintendent, which is great news if you have all the right skills and experience, as long as you do not live anywhere near the work site because the ad stipulates: 'To be eligible to apply for this role you must reside within 100 kilometres of the Brisbane Airport'.

Such a secure lock-out of local workers has had a devastating effect on the regional economy, especially in towns like Moranbah and nearby centres like Mackay.

Firstly, we witnessed a spike in unemployment.

Secondly, we witnessed the fallout of that unemployment—depression, despair, family breakdown, suicide and then desertion.

In Mackay, where homes were once virtually unobtainable—you could not get one for love or money—this morning there are more than 1,200 vacant homes for rent, not to mention the empty homes not advertised or not for rent.

The resource industry downturn has been exacerbated by these 100 per cent fly-in fly-out operations—a situation that should never have been allowed in the first place.

Unfortunately, the Bligh Labor government in Queensland either failed to consider potential future scenarios—or just did not care—when they approved 100 per cent fly-in fly-out operations at Daunia and Caval Ridge mines.

It was also unfortunate that the Newman government failed to take action to counter this discrimination.

But worse was to come, because despite promising to end 100 per cent fly-in fly-out practices, the Palaszczuk Labor government has broken that promise.

Before the Queensland 2015 election, Labor's policy document on this issue specifically said it would end existing 100 per cent fly-in fly-out operations near regional communities within 100 days of government—no doubt attracting plenty of votes from the most affected regions.

But, more than 300 days after the election, they have walked away from that promise.

This bill seeks to restore the fair go for local workers by using the existing framework that is designed to ensure everyone has a fair go.

This bill will amend the Fair Work Act to specifically say that employers cannot discriminate against potential job applicants on the basis of where they live, other than in cases where living locally is an essential component of being able to perform the job.

The act already prevents discrimination on other grounds, such as gender, race and religion.

This bill is both simple and effective. It uses the same framework that has proven to be effective against other forms of discrimination.

This framework allows the flexibility to use FIFO where needed. When the resource industry recovers, workers may need to be sourced from elsewhere—but locals can never be specifically excluded.

This bill would not have been necessary had the employer shared our cultural ideal of a fair go.

BMA, which operate Daunia and Caval Ridge mines, were given approval by the previous Labor government to use 100 per cent FIFO, but that does not mean they have to use it.

If BMA wanted to share the ideal of a fair go, they would remove any requirement about where a worker must live from their recruitment ads.

They would also reconsider their policy of casualising the workforce, which goes hand-in-hand with FIFO.

The simple knowledge that locals are allowed to apply for local jobs would immediately inject some much needed confidence into local economies.

North Queenslanders and Central Queenslanders are a resilient bunch, capable of rising to any challenge.

They have the skills and experience to drive our national economy forward.

All they ask is that they get a fair go.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion. In Central Queensland there is an alarming issue at foot of which every MP should take serious note. As my colleague the member for Dawson has noted, workers living in the Capricornia coal belt, our nation's biggest coal production area, are being shut out of local jobs because of where they live. The blame lies fairly and squarely with the Australian Labor Party, backed by the powerful CFMEU. In Queensland, the Labor Party introduced a policy of allowing 100 per cent fly-in fly-out workers on two critical coalmines in Capricornia. Job advertisements for 100 per cent FIFO positions declare that applicants must live within 100 kilometres of Brisbane Airport or Cairns in order to obtain work west of Rockhampton and Mackay. That means any local worker trying to support their family at Moranbah, Dysart, Nebo and other Capricornia towns are not allowed to apply for jobs there, even though the mine may be as little as 15 minutes drive up the road.

This Labor Party law smacks of discrimination. It has the hallmarks of an apartheid system based on the postcode of where you live. If apartheid rules were not good enough for South Africa then they cannot be good enough for Central Queensland workers. Labor's policy means we have suitable, skilled people living next door to a worksite who are outlawed from applying for a job there. The impact of Labor's 100 per cent FIFO rule is hurting the survival of our local towns. If people cannot get work and live in local communities, they simply leave. The consequence is that small business suffers, schools lose resources and other community services begin to dwindle. In short, our small mining towns are dying. The bill that we as LNP MPs present to the House today will help these communities.

Our bill aims to amend the Fair Work Act, prohibiting discrimination based on the location of your home. We support the motion to amend the Fair Work Act 2009 with amendment 351A, titled 'Discrimination based where a person lives'. It states:

An employer must not take adverse action against a person who is an employee, or prospective employee … because of where the person lives.

Last week the Queensland Labor government ended its inquiry into the 100 per cent FIFO policy. Queensland Labor is a state government that does not want to man up to the fact that it was Queensland Labor that introduced this despicable law in the first place under former premier Anna Bligh. The recent inquiry was led by union activist and MP Jim Pearce and overseen by several Labor Party mayors in Central Queensland. It suggested that 100 per cent FIFO is not accepted by anyone in regional Queensland. But they cannot unwind the mess their own party created because it is enshrined in contract legalities.

Ironically, the Queensland review recommended changing the antidiscrimination act so mining companies cannot refuse to employ workers based on where they live. It is ironic because I told the CFMEU and Jim Pearce that that is what the federal representatives were already actively seeking to do. When I spoke at a community forum on jobs and the impact of 100 per cent FIFO on Mackay, hosted by the CFMEU and Jim Pearce, I told them that I and the member for Dawson were already drawing up such a bill. Our bill today aims to make it illegal for companies to lock people out of jobs based on their home location. This bold private member's bill seeks to amend the nation's Fair Work Act 2009 to prohibit discrimination against workers based on where they live. This bill's intention is to ensure that Central Queenslanders can apply for Central Queensland jobs in our coalmining sector without discrimination.

I commend the bill to the House and I urge this parliament to stand up for what is right to safeguard families, small business, services and a person's right to at least apply for local jobs in our inland regional coal towns.

Russell Broadbent (McMillan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.