Kate Ellis (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister and again refers to 17-year-old Billy Schultze who works at the Belair BP service station and has recently been suspended and punished financially for not noting down all the registration details of drive-offs that occurred during his shift. Is the Prime Minister aware that Billy was last week offered a new AWA that cuts his hourly rate of pay by almost $2 an hour—from $9.09 to $7.17—and that the company’s stated reason to Billy for this cut in his pay was ‘to cover the cost of drive-offs’? Does the Prime Minister think it is fair that, not content with penalising Billy for drive-offs, the employer is now penalising him by using the government’s extreme industrial relations changes to drive his wages down?

Cameron Thompson (Blair, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Cameron Thompson interjecting

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

Order! The member for Blair! The member for Adelaide will repeat the last half of the question.

Kate Ellis (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Does the Prime Minister think that it is fair that, not content with penalising Billy for drive-offs, he is now being penalised by the employer using the government’s extreme industrial relations changes to drive his wages down?

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

The last part of that question almost asks for an opinion, but I believe the Prime Minister will answer the substance of the question.

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

I do not want to see any employee in this country treated unfairly. I certainly do not want to see people who serve petrol treated unfairly. But whether Billy has been treated unfairly, as implied by the member for Adelaide, would depend upon all of the circumstances, and—

Michael Danby (Melbourne Ports, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Danby interjecting

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

The member for Melbourne Ports is warned!

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

I have unhappily had the experience in this House of questions being put to me by the opposition that have not had the full facts. I do not think the member for Adelaide would fall into that category and I would prefer to give her the benefit of the doubt. So I will get all of the facts. I will take the question on notice, I will get all of the facts and then I will make a reply.