Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

The government supports this regulation but is mindful of the fact that the numbers in this place are against it. Therefore, I can indicate at the outset, given the event that is taking place in the Great Hall, we will not be seeking to divide on this particular regulation.

Having said that, I want to put the case very strongly as to why the government is advocating for this regulation change. When the Howard government first introduced GEERS, it was designed to ensure that workers got part of their entitlements. So, with respect, I say to Senator Rice that in the coalition's GEERS and the Labor Party's FEG—which was introduced in the dying days of that discredited government in a sop to certain individuals—the situation was very clear under both schemes that annual leave and long service leave were not covered. So, her suggestion that this has been taken from workers is simply wrong. It has never been covered by this scheme, so she might like to talk to whoever informed her about that and indicate that their research could potentially be enhanced.

This is a regulation that is based on the passage of the Fair Entitlements Guarantee Amendment Bill, and therefore we are debating a regulation that is specifically related to the textile, clothing and footwear sector. I indicate that this regulation would simply bring the TCF sector into the same category as other workers in the event that that amending legislation was carried. Not a single worker, to date, has benefited under this legislation in the textile, clothing and footwear sector. That is the reality. So of all these people whom Senator Rice and others have sought to talk about, nobody has made a claim in the two years since the Labor Party and the Greens forced this through the Senate. Having said that—