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

You may not have caught up with this yet—I would be surprised if you had not—but the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Bill 2009 on page 53 says at part 2—the WR Act award modernisation process—‘AIRC to continue and complete the award modernisation’:

(1)

The Australian Industrial Relations Commission is to continue and complete the award modernisation process provided for by Part 10A of  the WR Act (the Part 10A award modernisation process).

               …            …            …

(2)

For that purpose, Part 10A of the WR Act continues to apply on and 9 after the WR Act repeal day in accordance with this Part.

(3)

Without limiting subitem (2), the request under section 576C—

which is the one I referred to earlier—

of the WR Act continues to apply on and after the WR Act repeal day, and may be varied in accordance with that section.

And it goes on. So those transitional provisions, if I can call them that in shorthand, continue on with that so that it does not disappear. So, when we do get to the transitional provisions, and I am sure it will have the support of the opposition, it will then, should it pass—and I do not want to foreshadow that debate when it should happen—continue those provisions.