Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Fair Work Amendment (Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Bill 2022. The bill provides an entitlement to 10 days paid family and domestic violence leave in a 12-month period for full-time, part-time and casual employees. The bill builds on measures put in place by the former coalition government following the independent Fair Work Commission's 2018 decision to grant five days of unpaid family and domestic violence leave to employees covered by a modern award. The Fair Work Commission made its decision after carefully considering extensive evidence and submissions from unions, employers and other interested parties.

The Fair Work Commission's proposal, at the time, meant that the approximately two million Australians on awards would have been eligible to receive five days unpaid family and domestic violence leave. This earlier decision would have created complexity for Australian businesses, particularly small and medium businesses that have collective or individual agreements as well as award-reliant employees. This complexity would have seen workers who were on an award entitled to five days unpaid family and domestic violence leave while a worker in the same organisation who was on a collective agreement—