Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The minister accuses us on this side of taking out little bits and pieces that suit us. But I will take you to task, Minister. I will tell you why we have had the lowest level of industrial disputation over the last 10 years. It is because, when the Labor government introduced enterprise bargaining, one of the key clauses in every enterprise bargaining agreement was a dispute resolution procedure. All the hotheads can cool down while we go through the process and work resumes as normal—work carries on. It is amazing how it can diffuse a problem when someone is unfairly dismissed or when there is a problem for some other reason. Minister, you are very good at picking out the bits and pieces that suit you but, with your government’s latest shenanigans and Work Choices, I would like to know what the rest of Australia might think.

We are in a boom now in certain states of Australia. In my state of Western Australia and in the state of Queensland there is a wonderful boom. I do not think it is all that wonderful in Victoria and New South Wales. I hope it does pick up, but one thing I will leave you with, Minister, is the question of what will happen to our children. What will our children be confronting? What will they face when they leave school, and how the heck can a 15-year-old negotiate with the likes of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia? Answer that one, Minister.