Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Bill 2023. It finishes what the Albanese government started when we came to office. It is a new day in Australia for working families and their right to dignity and fair conditions at work under the Albanese Labor government. When we came to government, we passed the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Bill, which has transformed outcomes for the lowest paid Australians. We know that our efforts in delivering for workers is never finished, so we continue that journey together again today. This is why the Albanese Labor government brought into this place the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Bill 2023. This bill completes the work of the original bill. It will ensure that no worker slips through the cracks of IR loopholes and a corporate race to the bottom on working conditions.

For too long well-intentioned rules and regulations have been left vulnerable, with bad employers undercutting workers and taking their livelihoods away from them. We recognised this pressing reality in 2022 and swiftly enacted the secure jobs and better pay legislation. These reforms were nothing short of life-changing for Australia's lowest paid and disproportionately female workers, introducing modest mechanisms that have worked to increase wages, add job security and equalise the gender pay gap. That includes in two of the sectors that I have been involved in and advocating for since I came to this place—that is, early childhood education and aged care.

At that time, those opposite, as usual, were against ordinary workers and their families. They told Australians, with a straight face, that the sky would fall in and that inflation would spiral because of our reasonable measures. What happened, instead, was the opposite. Jobs growth has been the strongest for any government's first year, rates of industrial action have fallen dramatically and inflation has continued to moderate. This is all while Australians have seen their wages grow at the highest rate for more than a decade. There is no doubt that we will again hear the same fearmongering from those opposite who enthusiastically claim that low wages were a deliberate design feature of their economy while they were in government. Again, we must ignore that for the bile that it is. It is in their DNA. They don't care about Australian workers; they just care about their mates.

In relation to the substantive amendments, closing the loopholes does precisely what it says it does. It will eliminate cracks in the system so that it functions as intended to protect Australian workers from exploitation. It will give Australian workers the peace of mind that they will be subject to minimum standards that both employees and employers have already agreed to. It does nothing more and nothing less, and anyone here telling Australians otherwise is selling a dangerous lie. This bill has the potential to empower working families with dignified conditions and working stability. It is fair, and it is reasonable. We can stop the corporate race to the bottom and ensure that workers are paid properly. It establishes a choice of security for casual workers, protecting gig workers on the road from danger and upholding the primacy of workplace agreements.

At its core, this is a bill to keep Australians safe at work and to pay them fairly for the work that they do. It is about stopping poor work practices and ending exploitation in the workplace. In relation to casual employment in this bill, these amendments clarify that an employee who works a regular pattern of work can be a casual if there is no firm commitment to continuing indefinite work. To highlight this factor, last year we had a delegation of workers come to this House, and I heard yet again the story that there was a gentleman who was working on the north-west coast of Tasmania who had been working casually for 17 years. He wanted a full-time job. He wanted a permanent job. He wanted security. He wanted to be able to go and get a home loan, but he couldn't because he didn't have security of employment. This bill will change that. That is life changing for his family. If he chooses to seek to have a permanent job, then he will be able to have that with all the protections and security that come with that.

The Albanese Labor government is standing up for casual workers who want to become permanent employees. We are closing the loophole that leaves people stuck classified as casuals when they actually work permanent, regular hours. This will help casual workers who have a regular work arrangement, giving them greater access to leave entitlements and more financial security, if desired. They don't have to, but it's about choice. This is all about giving workers choice. We need to have a minimum standard to make sure Australia doesn't become a nation where you have to rely on tips to survive. We all look to America as this great international country—the powerhouse that it is. I've been to America and seen 80-year-old people packing groceries in a supermarket during the day and having to have a cleaning job as well to try and survive. They do that because there is no security like we have here in Australia. This bill continues that hard work and the tradition of the Labor government to ensure that we protect workers rights at the same time as working with business and employers.

This change will allow the Fair Work Commission to make orders for minimum standards for new forms of work, such as gig work. Just because someone is working in the gig economy doesn't mean that they end up being paid less than they would if they were an employee. We're not trying to turn people into employees when they don't want to be. A whole lot of gig workers like the flexibility they get from using this technology. They like that type of work. It allows them to continue to study. But they should have that choice. And, if you are a gig worker, you still deserve to have safety and the same terms and conditions as the person who is an employee in a company. We know there is a direct link between a low rate of pay and safety. It leads to a situation where workers take risks so that they get more work because they're struggling to make ends meet. This bill ends that. When we went through the pandemic, if you had COVID and you were a gig worker and you didn't work, you didn't get paid. Remember back when we were all saying thank you to the frontline workers, those truckies that were delivering food to keep food on our tables and retail workers in supermarkets on the front line? We were all singing their praises. But did the former government do anything about raising their pay and conditions and giving them security? No, they didn't, because that's not a part of their DNA.

The Albanese Labor government is also taking action to ensure that the trucking industry is safe, sustainable and viable. Thank you to the Transport Workers Union. Again, they were in this place this week, and their advocates had the opportunity to explain what it's like to be a gig worker and how difficult it is to be a truck driver. And, importantly, they were bringing with them their peak bodies and the sector of owners and drivers. They were talking to us and expressing how difficult it is. Let's face it: without the trucking industry and without truck drivers, we won't be able to sustain ourselves as a nation.

As part of the government's legislation, the Fair Work Commission will have the power, as I said, to set minimum standards for the road transport industry as well. Setting standards in the road transport industry will save lives. Just remember: when drivers are working extended hours—because if they don't work they don't get paid—it's you, it's me, it's my family and it's your families that are on the road. They're the ones who are as much at risk as the truck drivers because—let's face it—most of the truck drivers are driving these big semitrailers but it's your family, it's my family and it's the families of people out there that are on the road. This is crucially important to this sector. For too long we've heard stories of the deadly impact of cost-cutting and unrealistic deadlines, as starkly illustrated by the Without trucks Australia stops Senate report. The commission will be required to ensure any minimum standards do not adversely affect the viability and competitiveness of the owner-drivers.

These vital reforms would not have been possible in the first place if it were not for the work of Minister Tony Burke within the Employment and Workplace Relations portfolio, as well as the tireless efforts of the union movement in fighting for their workers and their members. I want to put on record my thanks to Minister Burke and draw attention to the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association, better known as the SDA, for all the wonderful advocacy that they've done for those within the retail sector, who are mostly casual workers; to the Transport Workers Union; to the ACTU; to all unions across the country; and, more broadly, to the labour movement. It's because of your hard work and the work of the Albanese Labor government, who have been listening and know only too well how important this legislation is, that we are here today and are going to bring dignity and safety back into Australians' workplaces. It won't matter whether you're on a factory floor, whether you're driving a truck, whether you're a gig worker, whether you're working in aged care or whether you're working in retail. Australian workers deserve nothing less than the highest protection at work for their safety so that they get to go home every night to their families. This legislation tries to stop the exploitation at the hands of greedy employers who have been taking advantage of them for far too long. It's not just new migrants to this country who have been exploited. It's Australians.

I want to assure the Australian people that you can always rely on the Australian Labor Party and the Albanese Labor government to stand up for working Australians. We are the party of fairness. We are the party of dignity at work. We are the party of the labour movement and the union movement. None of us who have come into this place—and I didn't come from a union background—have ever forgotten where we've come from and the values of what Labor stands for and what the union movement stands for.

When I and my older siblings were going out into the workforce, my mother and father told us, 'There are two things you must do when you go to work: you must work hard and do an honest day's work and then expect an honest day's pay, and you should vote Labor.' The third one was, 'You should join your union.' Guess what? Each of my grandchildren, when they turn 14, gets a membership form for the Labor Party. So I'm honouring that, Mum and Dad. Fighting for fair pay and conditions and fighting for workers' rights and a fair go is a noble quality. It is what makes the Labor Party. It is a great privilege. I'm so proud to be part of the Albanese Labor government.

To the unions, like the TWU, the AWU, the SDA—all the unions that have been coming to this place, visiting us in our electorates and talking at our conferences: we have heard you. We have listened to all the delegations of workers that have taken their time. Quite honestly, for a lot of these workers, like some I was hearing from yesterday, it's a big deal to come to this place and to talk to politicians if you're never done it before. I keep telling them we usually don't eat people! We're just like you. We just want to hear your true story because your truth is what is important. It's our responsibility as Labor government members, whether we're in the Senate or the other place, to listen to and respond to the concerns.

There will be amendments to this legislation. I am encouraged that we will get support in this chamber. This is such a fundamental change for Australian workers and for young people going out for their first jobs. My second-eldest grandson has just started work, and coincidentally he's working for a well-known supermarket chain. Yes, he's joined the SDA. He listened to his 'oma' when I said to get a job. He had a choice of two jobs. He chose the supermarket chain. I said: 'You work really hard. When you're offered a shift, you turn up every time and you give 110 per cent—but also join your union, because you need that protection.'

I commend this legislation. As I said, I'm very proud to commend Minister Tony Burke, the Prime Minister and my fellow Labor members both in this place and the other place, and I commend this to the chamber.