Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Manufacturing) Share this | Hansard source

Minister Cash, I need to ask you again about the Work Health and Safety Act and its application to all workplaces, because it doesn't cover everyone currently. I know, for example, that mine sites in production in Queensland and WA aren't currently covered, and they have had some significant incidents of rape and sexual harassment take place. In the meantime, Minister McGurk from Western Australia submitted to our committee inquiry that she supported, very strongly, a positive duty as outlined by the Sex Discrimination Commissioner. It is not mutually exclusive to making progress with the state governments on improving the work health and safety regime. So, first of all, I want to ask you specifically about the application of the Work Health and Safety Act to accommodation existing in remote mine sites in Queensland, WA and other jurisdictions.