Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I just asked that rhetorically; I was anticipating the interjected answer. I simply say very briefly that section 26, to which the minister referred, is entitled ‘Resolving difficulties about application of this Division’, so the legislation itself foresees difficulties. What we are suggesting is that some of these problems can in fact be avoided up front without the need to go through Fair Work Australia to make a determination varying the transitional instrument for the purposes of ‘resolving difficulties’, whatever that might mean. We have repeated a number of times now that a worker could not and would not be worse off but it would stop the double dipping and retrospective application in circumstances where, for example, wage negotiations in an aged-care facility may have been undertaken on the basis of what the government is willing to pay per nursing home bed. If these things change, I am sure the government will not be increasing the funding per nursing home bed on the basis of some of the increased costs that will be visited upon health and aged-care facilities around the country because of these changes.