House debates

Thursday, 4 February 2021

Questions without Notice

Workplace Relations

3:03 pm

Photo of Kristy McBainKristy McBain (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Labor used the government's own fair pay calculator to show the Prime Minister's industrial relations changes will hurt cooks, pharmacy assistants, shelf stackers, aged-care workers, disability carers, car park attendants, hairdressers and butchers. Why won't the Prime Minister tell the truth and admit he is changing the law to allow wages to be cut?

3:04 pm

Photo of Christian PorterChristian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | | Hansard source

It is because the government is not doing that. The thing about calculators is that they don't measure the honesty of the user.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Members on my left.

Photo of Christian PorterChristian Porter (Pearce, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | | Hansard source

The way that calculators work is that they don't measure the honesty of the user, so a user can sit there and pretend that certain things exist or that certain conditions exist, or assert a change in a bill that isn't there, or pretend that something's going to happen that clearly isn't going to happen. They can pump that into the calculator, get a result that they want and bring it into parliament. The bill clearly does not do what the members opposite say it does. A person on an award will benefit very greatly from this bill if they're part time because, in instances where they now can't get extra work, they will be able to get that extra work and be paid more. The bill is designed to, and does, achieve the effect of more job growth, better wages and better conditions. It doesn't do what you're saying, and the honesty of those inputs into the calculator is clearly wanting.