Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I know Senator Collins herself has been a long-term campaigner to make sure that these sorts of benefits are extended to casual and part-time workers, to contractors and to those who are self-employed. Our scheme does that: it gives parents more options to balance work and family, and it also helps employers to retain skilled staff and boost workforce participation.

The reality of the modern workforce is that people increasingly have casual, part-time and other arrangements that have traditionally not seen them benefit from this sort of reform. But under this government’s new scheme, those people will benefit from this reform and they will be able to access parental leave. To help employers prepare for the scheme, the role of employers in providing government funded paid parental leave will be phased in over the next six months of the new scheme to align with the new financial year, making sure this works for businesses as well as for families.