Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

The betrayal of low-paid workers, the betrayal of women workers, was the passage through this Senate of Work Choices, stripping away many of the safeguards, stripping away the wages and conditions which had been hard fought for by many workers and the labour movement for many years. We know that this senator and a number of others on that side are amongst the champions advocating a return to Work Choices. So don’t come in here and try and pretend you care about working people when your party implemented the most antiworker legislation in this country has ever seen. There are people, including the good senator sitting behind you, Senator Back, from your own state, who are also advocating a return to many of the worst aspects of Work Choices. We know in this chamber who has a track record of standing up for workers’ rights, and it is not you.