Sam Rae (Hawke, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a simple economic principle that accurate and fair input prices are a precondition for stable and effective markets. One of the largest of these input prices in our economy is labour—and rightly so. It reflects the enormous contribution made by the millions of Australians who go to work each day to keep our nation moving. The economic mechanism to ensure a fair price for this labour and to provide security and longevity in the market is the collective action of workers. For over 100 years, trade unions have served this interest on behalf of workers and our broader economy. Trade unions have achieved so much for Australian workers, and I commend the work that the government, particularly minister Tony Burke, is doing to empower collective action and the trade union movement through industrial reforms such as the Secure Jobs, Better Pay bill, which will be introduced shortly.

Whilst the trade union movement has fought for workers all throughout that 100 years, they have recently faced a sneakier, more insidious opposition—corporations setting up shop as fake unions, undermining the interests of workers and the economy. Rather than supporting workers in uniting to pursue better pay and conditions, fake unions exist to promote individuals opposed to the collective who are just in it for themselves. Sadly, these companies have been popping up all over the place, in Queensland, in New South Wales and in my state of Victoria.

They are generally set up for one of two reasons. The first is to generate profit from the fees paid by the vulnerable workers they prey upon. These fake unions trick and lie to workers, often citing false claims to justify their sad existence. In reality, these corporations have been set up by employment lawyers, disgruntled opportunists and politically motivated individuals seeking to make a buck on the back of hardworking Australians.

The second purpose of these fake unions is to divide workers and weaken the power of collectivism that is fundamental to our movement and represents our strength at the bargaining table. The basis of their existence is to pit workers against one another and undermine the efforts and processes of the legitimate trade unions who actually fight for workers' rights.

Fake unions are not trade unions. They are for-profit corporations established to serve the interests of those who create them. A real union has a legal right to represent you in the workplace or to enter a workplace and inspect the safety conditions. A fake union does not. A real union has rules, is regulated and is registered with the Fair Work Commission. A fake union is not. A real union is not incorporated, because a real union is not a company. Fake unions are a blight on workers and their interests. They exist to divide and will only ever undermine the progress our movement has made.

To all Australian workers, I say: join your union—your real, registered trade union. The fight for workers' rights is, sadly, now being fought on another front, and only through the power of collective action at the bargaining table will workers ultimately prevail. To those that seek to profiteer by establishing fake unions and taking advantage of workers: we see you, we know what you're doing and we'll act to shut you down and hold you to account.