Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

Labor will be supporting the suspension today to bring on a universal paid pandemic leave bill—the Fair Work Amendment (COVID-19) Bill 2020—for debate. We shouldn't be in this position where we're having to move a suspension for a private senator's bill. This should have been a scheme that was brought in by the government. It should have been brought in months ago. I think the point that the Greens senators are making here is that this is the last couple of days we sit before the budget. There's another month to go, and we haven't been able to get the government to bring in a paid pandemic leave scheme. I think it's one of the real weaknesses in our response to COVID-19. I think the more and more we learn about this virus, the more and more we understand the need for people, if they are feeling unwell, to be able to stay at home and isolate, pending tests.

What we also know is that, for many people, staying at home is not a choice that they are able to make, because they have to make a choice between income, putting food on the table, looking after their kids and paying their bills or not doing those things. If there's no sick leave or other entitlements for them—and let's remember, there are 3.7 million workers in this country that don't have access to leave entitlements—that's the fundamental issue that needs to be addressed through a paid pandemic leave scheme that operates across the country.

People who represent workers—the unions—were calling for this back at the beginning of the pandemic, because they realised that, with the nature of insecure work in this country, we had millions of workers without access to leave entitlements who, when it came to the crunch, would be forced to go to work so that they would be able to earn an income, and they would not be in a position to make that choice of working from home or keeping away if they were unwell. This was a real gap in the response. I think we've seen it play out. We've certainly seen it play out in aged care.

One of the biggest issues of the outbreak in Victoria has been the casualised workforce working across multiple sites when they are unwell, and the COVID-19 infection spread across sites because they didn't have access to leave entitlements which would have allowed them to stay at home. The Commonwealth has acted in relation to aged-care workers in Victoria. The state government has responded, with a payment arrangement to be put in place. But it's not universal, it doesn't happen across the country and it's not in place early enough. It has, again, been a reactionary measure from this government to deal with a problem once the problem arises, and for the workers that have become unwell, for the outbreaks that have spread, that's been too late.

So we do support this suspension. We think 1½ hours to debate is reasonable. We actually think it should be a government bill. They're in charge. They're the ones that are getting all the information. They should be taking the lead on this, and they should be providing nationally consistent arrangements, because, as we understand it, without a vaccine the situation for many casualised workers, for those who don't have permanent employment—contractors, freelancers, sole traders, gig workers and all those sorts of people—is that they are going to face this pressure until a vaccine is here, and that could be some time. So I think the suspension by the Greens should be supported. It is sensible. We need to take action on paid pandemic leave.

The bill that the Greens have moved isn't exactly as Labor would have done it. There are some areas that we would do differently. But we welcome the debate on the issue itself, because what it's highlighting is a significant gap in the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic—a gap that is easily addressed and would allow those workers who aren't in the fortunate position that people like us are in to make those choices in the interests of the community, as opposed to having to make choices for themselves and their families. It becomes a choice between earning an income or not earning an income. And not earning an income has significant consequences for families. There's a sensible way to deal with it. The unions have been arguing for it for months. Any casual worker will tell you that this is a real problem for them. If we're going to be serious about stopping the spread, managing the outbreaks and opening up the economy then this has to be an ingredient to support that recovery. (Time expired)