David Shoebridge (NSW, Australian Greens) | Hansard source

I associate myself with the work of my colleague Senator Barbara Pocock and the words just then of my colleague Senator McKim. It's extraordinary, isn't it? The Labor Party now have a choice: they can either pick the pockets of teenagers who go to work and put money in the pockets and the profits of megacorporations like Coles and Woolworths, or they can stand up today and say, 'You know what; teenagers are entitled to super when they go to work.' Today, Labor is choosing to pick the pockets of teenagers and put money in the profits of Coles and Woolworths. What a disgrace Labor is!

The basic principle here is, no matter your age, if you go to work and do a day's work or three or four hours work, you're entitled to your wages and fair conditions—and the Greens believe you're entitled to your superannuation. But when it comes to teenage workers, 16- and 17-year-old workers, Labor say, 'Actually, you know what; they don't need superannuation.' They'd rather that the money go to Labor's corporate donors, whether it's Coles or Woolworths or McDonald's. That's where they want the money to go.

What really gets me about this—and I credit the work of the SDA and the work of those young people who have been crunching some of the numbers here—is it can make a difference of thousands of dollars. At the end of two years of working without super, under Labor's plan, young workers are getting maybe $2,000 or $3,000 in their super when they turn 18. That $3,000 in their super will then multiply with compound interest over the course of their working life and can make a really significant difference. That's what Labor's cheating young workers out of.

Bringing on my colleague Senator Barbara Pocock's disallowance motion today in order to vote it down, with the handmaidens of corporate Australia in the coalition and One Nation—that's what the government are doing. The Greens are moving a motion here saying that when 16- and 17-year-olds go to work, they should get paid their super and the profits shouldn't go to the likes of Coles and Woollies, and Labor are working with the coalition and One Nation to pump up the profits of Coles and Woolworths—only this time they're doing it at the expense of 16- and 17-year-olds' superannuation accounts and payments. Shame on Labor!