Sam Rae (Hawke, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. How is the Albanese Labor government helping low-paid workers earn more and keep more of what they earn? What response has there been to the government's policies?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Hawke. In his electorate, as we count down to 1 July, every single taxpayer is getting a tax cut, and every single award worker is getting a pay rise—every single one of them. Both things happening are what those opposite hate. People are earning more, and people are keeping more of what they earn.

The decision from the Fair Work Commission yesterday, that 3.75 per cent increase, comes on top of increase after increase after increase that happened when the government changed its policy. Those opposite hate it when they're reminded of it being a deliberate design feature to keep wages low. They say, 'Oh, it was only a comment that Mathias made, and he didn't really mean it.' That is the argument that gets put. Apparently the fact that wages completely flatlined was just a coincidence.

Also, they ignore what changed. This was a submission to the first annual wage review that we made a submission to in 2022, but this submission ended up not being taken into account by the Fair Work Commission, because it's the one that they had put forward, which we asked to have withdrawn. And this one had section 7.1—this is a chapter of the submission we decided to not include—called 'The importance of low-paid work'. Those opposite were completely upfront that they wanted people to keep wages low. They did not want the commission to make the orders that it has made. When loopholes arose that allowed the undercutting of wages, they wanted to leave the loopholes open. When we had a gig economy where people had no minimum standards at all, they liked it that way. When you had an enterprise agreement being undercut by labour hire, that was exactly what they wanted to have happen.

Two years of different submissions being made to the rubbish they used to put forward means that, as a result of all of that, full-time retail workers will be seeing $102 a week extra in their bank accounts. Cleaners will be seeing $103 extra in their bank accounts. Hairdressers will see $106 extra in their bank accounts. Aged-care workers will be seeing an extra $200 in their bank accounts. That's what you get as a result of two years of work. They have opposed it every step of the way. It took them their entire 10 years in office to get the minimum wage to move as far as it has moved under the Albanese Labor government in just two years. They want people to work longer for less. Under us, people will earn more and keep more of what they earn.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.