Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Sheldon. We know that, over the last couple of weeks, we've had a whole lot of Johnny-come-latelies who've all of a sudden decided to take an interest in Qantas. But there are some people, like Senator Sheldon, Senator White, Senator Sterle and others, who have long careers in standing up for the workers of Qantas to make sure that they're treated fairly. They're not Johnny-come-latelies; they're people who've actually got records of standing up on these issues. These loopholes that Senator Sheldon is complaining about impact Australians every day, and they create a race to the bottom on wages. They undermine negotiated pay and conditions, and they undermine the integrity of the enterprise bargaining system.