Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

When we talked about 1 July, we talked about birthdays in this place. It is the birthday of one of my brothers on 1 July, and I can tell you that he is not looking for any cuts to the penalty rates for his workforce and his colleagues there. What we know about those on the other side is that they are so out of touch. They talk about independent umpires, but they did not even make a submission on behalf of Australian workers. You did not even make a submission. What we have always said is that there needs to be protection for the lowest-paid workers in this country. If they are giving up their time to serve us on a Sunday in hospitality or in retail, they should be compensated for being away from their families. I do not know anyone who goes out for lunch on a Sunday afternoon who is resentful of paying a little bit more. I do not know anyone who is prepared to complain about that.

But what I do know is that, on 1 July, in my home state of Tasmania, there are some 40,000 Tasmanians who will be worse off. We already know that because we talk about it in this place all the time. Senator Duniam is here. He understands the economic difficulties that we have in Tasmania. We have a very low paid workforce. That workforce cannot afford to lose that $77 a week.

Those on the other side talk about small business and how they are the champions of small business. They lecture us all the time. The reality of life is that small businesses rely on everyday Australians to keep their businesses turning over. But I can assure you that those people who work in hospitality or retail, or as hairdressers or aged-care workers expend all of their weekly salary. They have to do that. They do not have money to put away. They need those penalty rates to ensure that they can pay their bills, meet their mortgage payments or pay their rent, and go to the doctor. That is the reality. I can assure you that I very much look forward to being in this place in the coming months, when we come back to this chamber after the break, because I guarantee that I will be vindicated for saying that there will not be any further increase in jobs in small businesses in Tasmania. That is because there will not be. They will be pocketing that money—that is what they will be doing—and there will not be any flow-on effect to the Tasmanian economy.

We have spoken time and time again about 1 July and what is going to happen with these penalty rate cuts. Let's not forget that this government had ample opportunity to support the bill that we introduced into the House of Representatives that was supporting the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Take-Home Pay) Bill 2017. The government have refused to support it. Today is the last day of sittings—maybe we will sit tomorrow; that remains to be seen—and this government can still act to support that legislation to protect some of the lowest-paid workers in this country.

Why is it that the government, when they come in here and lecture us about the big end of town and the great saviours that they are of small business, are then giving the millionaires of this country $16,400 on 1 July?