Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Members opposite claim that theirs is the party that stands up for Australian workers' rights. They reckon that they have a monopoly on protecting workers' interests. But that old claim is starting to are very, very thin. It is a claim based not on their actions in the present but on their rose-coloured memories of the past. It is a tired claim, a threadbare and out-of-date claim. Today led by a man who has spent most of his life giving workers rights away, it is nothing short of laughable. In reality, the Labor Party's interest in protecting Australian workers has long been consigned to the dustbin of history. Those opposite cynically depend on the loyalty and faith of Australian workers while they shamelessly sell them out in their own interest and for the benefit of their union masters. The evidence is overwhelming. In every portfolio, they have a black record of tireless effort to stop new jobs being created, reduce freedom and choice and defend union exploitation.

One area where the bankruptcy of Labor's pretence is most clear is on the question of 457 visas, which were designed to support the Australian economy by allowing employers to fill rare, critical skills shortages in their workforce. They were supposed to help Australian workers, not harm them. Australia has a highly skilled and adaptable workforce. If an employer needs to look overseas for a skilled worker it should mean it is trying something new or rare in our country. This sort of innovation drives economic growth and creates more jobs for Australian workers. Those on the other side of the chamber have gone very quiet because they know this is extremely embarrassing for them. A well-used 457 visa program should be a positive benefit to Australian workers.

What happened to the 457 visas system under Labor? How did the so-called champions of Australian workers use it? Was it to the benefit of Australians? Of course it was not. Labor, including during the time that the Leader of the Opposition was employment minister, oversaw the granting of record numbers of 457 visas, more than 110,000 of them in a single year under the Leader of the Opposition when he was employment minister. There were 457 visas for work of every kind, work that should have been done by unemployed Australians. For example, under the stewardship of the now Leader of the Opposition, 457 visas were allowed for working on construction sites—for flipping burgers, even. Yes, under the fast food industry labour agreement established under Labor by the shadow Treasurer and the Leader of the Opposition, fast food stores were allowed to bring in workers on a 457 visa.

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