Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am rising tonight to speak about an issue that is very critical to my electorate and is indeed a critical issue facing this country: protecting penalty rates and the terrible impact that the Fair Work Commission's decision will have on people in my electorate. I, along with I think the majority of ordinary Australians, was shocked and appalled when the Fair Work Commission announced that it would cut penalty rates for workers in the retail, hospitality, fast food and pharmaceutical sectors, and of course I joined everyone on this side of the House to express that outrage. What was severely lacking, though, was outrage from those on the other side. There was no outrage from the Liberal and Nationals parties about the fact that these cuts to penalty rates will rip $77 a week from the pockets of around 700,000 hardworking Australians.

In my electorate the retail sector is the second-biggest employer, employing shy of 9,000 people.

Alan Tudge (Aston, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Do you cover Coles and Woolies?

Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I hear the interjection from the member for Aston. Maybe he should stand up for retail workers in my electorate as I am standing up for workers in my electorate. In total, 12,735 people and families in my electorate will have their take-home pay cut. And we hear a lot of protests from those on the other side, because they do not know what ordinary people's lives look like. They do not understand just how important these penalty rates are to people's take-home pay. We know that those opposite have a long history of cutting wages and conditions in this country. Indeed, this is the party of Work Choices. This is the party of changes that ripped away the basic safety net from so many workers. And I have a message for this government: penalty rates are not a gift. And cutting those penalty rates—even worse—is definitely not a gift. It is the attitude of those on the other side, who continually take this issue and give it mere lip service. Their excuse: 'The commission told us to do it, and we're going to stand by and let that happen.' Well, this is an outrage, and Labor will stand up for those people who desperately rely on penalty rates.

In question time today we heard about Kerry. Kerry is from my electorate, from Sellicks Beach, and she is a pharmacy assistant. I spoke to Kerry on the phone today and she said that yes, she will be a lot worse off as a result of this change, and it will affect her. But she also said to me that she is not just worried about herself; she is worried about society. She is worried about her son, who also relies on penalty rates. And she is worried about the fabric of this country—what this country will become when we are cutting the pay of our lowest-paid workers. But Kerry's message to me, despite this impacting her significantly, and while she was here at Parliament House today, was that she was here to have a conversation about how it will be bad for the country. And I think that is what a lot of people in this debate are saying: that actually increasing income inequality in this country by cutting the take-home of hundreds of thousands or hardworking Australians is an absolute disgrace.

I have had many constituents—not just Kerry—come to me and say that they are absolutely opposed to this decision. One constituent is a mother of two young children and is currently studying at university. She gave up her weekday job to pursue her dream to become a midwife. To get there, she needed two incomes, so this young mum is working weekends in retail. She works on the weekend so that her husband can be home to look after their children. They need this money to ensure that they live a life that has the basic necessities.

What this government is saying to this constituent as well as to Kerry is: 'We don't care about your living standards. We don't care about your take-home pay. We are happy to sit by and watch these cuts happen.' Well, this is a disgrace. Labor is giving the government the opportunity to get on board and support our protection— (Time expired)