George Campbell (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Vanstone, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. Does the minister recall her comments yesterday about the minimum salary of $41,850 for temporary foreign skilled workers? She said:

... if someone were working exorbitant hours to earn that—and, as I said before, it is a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay—the immigration department would regard that as a breach of the conditions.

Is the minister aware that foreign temporary skilled workers being paid the minimum wage would have to work over 63 hours a week in order to reach the minimum salary of $41,850 specified in the regulations? Does the minister think it is exorbitant that foreign workers can be forced to work up to 63 hours a week in order to earn $41 850?

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for the question. I do not dispute the words. I have not checked exactly but Senator Campbell is not one known for misquoting so I do not put the usual rider on it—

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Perhaps I am wrong. Perhaps he is known for that—sorry, trying to be nice. But Senator Campbell forgets to add what else I said yesterday, and that was that if Senator Sterle had any knowledge or facts to indicate that anybody was being misused—as the government thinks they would be—under this visa and treated improperly he should give us the information. In fact I went further and said that I would wait for his call after question time. It was a lonely wait by the phone.

I repeat what I said yesterday: the immigration department does believe that the combination of setting the salary, which is gazetted, the agreement that a sponsor has to enter into and the application of Australian industrial law, which has as a normal working week 38 hours, means that what I said yesterday is right. It is a combination of laws and the agreement that come to that conclusion. But, in order to ensure that that is beyond doubt, the regulations, which went to Executive Council yesterday—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Interesting.

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

‘Interesting,’ says Senator Evans. The regulations, which went to the Executive Council yesterday morning and were signed off some considerable time before that, will in fact not only specify the $41,850 but go further and put it into the gazette. So someone who is incapable of putting the industrial relations law, the gazette and the agreement together or who thinks that with those three things they could try and worm their way through will not be able to, because it will be spelt out in the gazette, which was signed off by Dr Marie Bashir yesterday.

George Campbell (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I thank the minister for her kind words.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

George Campbell (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, it is not often you get them from that side of the chamber! Is the minister aware of Korean workers engaged by KSN Engineering Ltd being paid $15 an hour to work for various construction and fabrication companies in Western Australia? Isn’t it a fact that to reach the minimum salary of $41,850 specified in the regulations, these workers would have to work at least 53 hours a week? Does the minister believe that these workers should be paid at least the hourly rate under the relevant award and appropriate overtime payments for any extra hours worked over the standard 38-hour week?

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In relation to the latter part of the senator’s question, clearly yes. That is the basis of the answer that I gave yesterday and that is the basis of amending the gazette, which, as I said, was signed off yesterday morning by the Acting Governor-General. It is to make sure that anybody who looked at the gazette and then did not want to go to the normal industrial relations law and the agreement—the combination of which would give you a ‘yes’ to that—can understand that. That is why we have changed the gazette—to make sure that is the case. Am I aware of the company KSN Engineering and the particular hourly rates that you have mentioned? No.

George Campbell (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have just made you aware of it.

Amanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks for reminding yourself, Senator. I can assure the senator that now that he has raised this matter in public, the matter will be investigated, and if the company is doing the wrong thing they will be dealt with, because this is a very valuable visa to Australian business. It allows them to take the opportunities that economic growth presents them with—opportunities they did not have under the Labor government. (Time expired)