Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Pratt for her supplementary question. Before the 2007 election Labor published a comprehensive workplace relations policy. We sought and received a mandate for this policy, and now the Liberal Party is opposing it. The Liberal Party does not seem to be able to come to grips with the fact that the mandate provided ensured that we could pursue unfair dismissals. Under Work Choices employees at businesses with up to 100 workers could be dismissed for any reason without any right to challenge their sacking. Now those opposite want to reject that, want to ignore the mandate that was given to Labor to be able to pursue fairness and flexibility in the workplace. The Liberals’ definition of a small business as one with 25 full-time employees, and the Family First definition of a small business as one with 20 full-time employees, would significantly disadvantage thousands of— (Time expired)