Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Rhiannon, I can advise that police forces, ambulance services and hospitals, because hospitals have been raised, are not covered by the amendments and we have, as a government, no intention of covering them. Such bodies do not fall within the meaning of 'designated emergency management bodies' as set out in section 195A(4)(a)(i) of the amended Fair Work Act. Why? It is because they are neither firefighting nor state emergency services bodies. It also needs to be understood, in relation to the question that you have posed, that they would also need a precursor to basically come anywhere near falling within what this change to the Fair Work Act would do. The body that you are referring to would actually need to be covered by the Fair Work Act. The first precondition is the body needs to be covered by the Fair Work Act. The majority of states have not referred their workplace relations powers for the public sector, and, on that basis, they do not apply. As I said, the government has no intention of covering them.