Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Senator Ludwig. Does the government stand by its oft repeated election promise that it will maintain current right of entry laws without exception?

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When we looked at the record of the Liberals in respect of this, we promised to get rid of the unfair Work Choices legislation and we are proceeding to do that. We have also ensured, as we did earlier this year, that we will not have the unfair AWAs, that only fit and proper persons hold a right of entry permit and that permit holders understand that the right to enter another’s premises comes with significant responsibilities.

Right of entry laws balance the right of employees to be represented by their union with the right of employers to get on with running their businesses. Officials cannot enter an employer’s premises without giving proper notice. That is one of the areas. They must also follow reasonable directions from an employer when they are on the employer’s site and comply with any occupational health and safety requirements that may apply to the site. An employer must not hinder a union official who holds a valid right of entry permit and who has entered their premises in accordance with the right of entry law. However, a union official cannot abuse those rights and privileges that accompany a right of entry permit. A right of entry permit may be revoked when the Australian Industrial Registry determines that they are no longer a fit and proper person to hold such a permit.

Changes to the industrial instruments available make it necessary to work through right of entry provisions in more detail. These are some of the matters that we will have to examine, and that is a task which has yet to be finalised. What I can say, though, is that we are pleased to have finalised Work Choices. I think the election demonstrated that the Work Choices legislation was out of touch. It was over the top. It dragged and stripped conditions from employees. It ensured that there was not fairness in the system, and what the Rudd government are doing—and we expect the Liberals to assist us with this—is ensuring that there are balanced and fair industrial relations laws in this land. We will ensure that value is placed on fairness. It is putting the fair go back into industrial relations after the Liberals ripped it out with their Work Choices legislation.

If you look at the position of the Liberals in this area, which they invited the electorate to forget, 100 years of fair industrial legislation was thrown out the door with Work Choices. It was a false choice that you gave employees with Work Choices, because Work Choices was a recipe for neither fairness nor prosperity. Work Choices was all about ensuring that the industrial relations system that we operated under was thrown out. It would not ensure that employees and employers would get a fair go in the industrial relations system.

Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What about right of entry laws?

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What I have said in respect of the right of entry provisions is that there are a raft of changes that will come through Work Choices. Some have been settled to a greater degree of specificity. The government’s policy on the right of entry will ensure that employees can be represented by their union and employers have the right to get on with running their businesses. It is about ensuring that there is balance in the system, unlike the Liberals, who ensured that there would not be fairness in the industrial relations system. It is unlike the Liberals, who then said that with Work Choices they were going to stand for nothing more than ripping conditions from employees. (Time expired)

Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I will put aside my disappointment that the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations announced changes today at lunchtime and her representative in this place cannot tell the Senate anything about those changes at question time this afternoon. Given that Labor’s new agreement-making proposal will give unions the green light to force their way into small businesses right around Australia, isn’t this proof—

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Rubbish!

Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, tell us what it is all about then. Don’t just squib the issue. Tell us what is going on. Isn’t this proof that militant unionist Joe McDonald was right when he said last year that, if the Howard government got back, ‘I’ll be back’?

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is a case where the supplementary question—and, Senator, I thought you would have been more experienced than that—was written out before they came into question time. If the senators on the other side had taken the opportunity to listen to the answer I gave on the government’s policy on right of entry, I provided that answer to you. But, if you missed it, if you were not listening or if in fact you ensured that your supplementary was not going to reflect what I had informed the Senate about, right of entry laws will balance the right of employees to be represented by their union with the right of employers to get on with running their businesses. Officials will not be able to enter an employer’s premises without giving proper notice. They must follow reasonable directions from an employer when they are on the employer’s site and comply with occupational health and safety requirements that may apply to the site. In addition to that, an employer must not hinder a union official— (Time expired)