Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Hansard source

To assist the honourable senator and those who may be listening to the question that has been asked, I indicate that the minister said, ‘You can sack somebody provided it is not unlawful.’ Then he went on to make the other comment. So there is a legislative protection against unlawful sacking, which those opposite continually refuse to acknowledge. They refuse to acknowledge that important fact because they are concerned about running a campaign of political opportunism against Work Choices rather than engaging in the exercise of nation building that we are.

For the past decade, we have been engaged in the exercise of nation building and have seen more and more of our fellow Australians getting jobs and higher wages. What we are doing as a government is increasing and ramping that up even further so that more of our fellow Australians can get employment whilst being protected against unlawful dismissals. The reasons for unlawful dismissal include sex, race and sexual preference. Interestingly enough, I think one of the reasons it would be unlawful is if you happen to belong or not to belong to a particular trade union. But we know that is the offence that many people in the Labor Party get sacked for, because they happen to belong to the wrong trade union and therefore they are disendorsed. Just ask the deputy leader in this place, Senator Conroy, about the unfair dismissal attempts aimed at the member for Hotham and Mr Gavan O’Connor, the member for Corio—