Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

Last November, I addressed the CPSU national governing council and indicated that I was always willing to engage in constructive dialogue with union representatives and would look forward to the use of telephones, email and meetings, rather than megaphones. Sadly, this has not occurred. Recently the CPSU sought a meeting with me to discuss their concerns with bargaining—largely, the government's supposed stripping of rights such as superannuation. While my door will always be open to stakeholders with genuine concerns, I am reluctant to acquiesce to a stunt meeting designed to further spurious claims about the government's bargaining policy; and also because, as the CPSU has previously been told, I am not the Commonwealth's bargaining agent. I say once again to the CPSU: stop standing between your members, their jobs and sustainable wage increases.