Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I think it's timely that we know there are shortages of staff and labour and all that. I've got to bring this to the attention of the Senate. This dropped in my lap a couple of days ago. It is an article from Big Rigs magazine. It's headed 'ATO receives 727 tip-offs about dodgy road freight operators'. Isn't this amazing? We've got driver shortages—we are about 22,000 drivers short, according to seek.com only a month ago, and that's before we start talking about forkies, receivables staff, loaders, diesel mechanics, tire fitters, spray painters and auto-electricians. And yet what the ATO can tell us is there are 727 dodgy operators. Well, I've got to tell the ATO: Good on you for letting us know when someone's dobbed someone in. I'll give you another 300,000—piece of cake!

If anyone doubts me, come and join me. Just walk the line at Coles or Woolworths or ALDI or Costco. Walk the line with me, and talk to all these truck drivers who are paid on kilometre rates as they run interstate. Kilometre rates are supposed to be so fan-damn-tastic, but the drivers sit at the DCs for three, four or five hours with no pay. Then, do you know what they do? They don't log the hours they're sitting there—no, no, you can't do that. It's bad enough not being paid, but then they can't log their hours because then they can't get back to Melbourne or Sydney or Adelaide, or even halfway back.

This is well-known. It came up in my Senate inquiry. I didn't make this up; drivers told me. I know there are some very decent employers out there who pay kilometre rates. I know there are some very decent employers who look after their staff and go on hourly rates. Sadly, they're in the minority. I'd say to the ATO: if you've got a spare day or two, come and walk the line with me. I throw that offer out to any other senator, including ones from the other side. This is national wage theft. It's rife. Labor will fix this with an independent body within—

Penny Allman-Payne (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Sterle. Senator Roberts.