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

I thank Senator Mason for his question and note his commitment to creating more jobs and higher wages for our fellow Australians. The independent evidence of the respected Australian Bureau of Statistics is absolutely clear: workers on the Howard government’s Australian workplace agreements are paid on average 13 per cent more than those on, often union negotiated, collective agreements. No ifs and no buts—that is what the official figures say.