Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to the government’s $55 million advertising campaign, which included the Work Choices booklet, which stamps the following entitlements—public holidays, rest breaks, incentive based payments and bonuses, annual leave loadings, allowances, penalty rates, shift/overtime loadings—as protected by law. I also refer to clause 20 of the Spotlight 2c an hour AWA, which includes: ‘This expressly excludes the operation of protected award conditions with respect to public holidays, rest breaks, incentive based payments and bonuses, annual leave loading, monetary allowances, penalty rates, loadings for overtime or shiftwork.’ Prime Minister, rather than being protected, aren’t all these gone for 2c an hour?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In the case, that could not be more wrong, because in the case of 38 out of the 40 workers employed at the Mount Druitt Spotlight firm all of those people went from being on the dole into a job that paid $355 a week—

Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Treasury) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms King interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Ballarat is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So, far from those conditions being gone for 2c a week—

Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Treasury) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms King interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member for Ballarat will excuse herself under standing order 94(a).

The member for Ballarat then left the chamber.

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Pyne interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Sturt is warned too.

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So, far from certain things being gone for 2c an hour, these workers are $355 a week better off.