Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Senator Watt. The Albanese government has committed to getting wages moving with its workplace relations policies, which will provide Australians with job security, gender equity and sustainable wage growth, after a decade of neglect by the Liberals and Nationals. Can the minister please outline the benefits of these policies to both Australian workers and businesses. Why is it important to get wages moving?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Sterle, another one of our comrades over there who has spent a lot of time for working people right across the country. We are unapologetic standing up for working people in this country. I was hoping we'd end the week on a question from the government about our industrial relations reforms.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would ask those again on my left to stop with the shouting out. It is not a football match; it is question time. You are all being incredibly disorderly.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I was saying, I'm very happy that we're ending the week of question time speaking about the government's important industrial relations policies, which are all about helping people get a decent pay rise, because if there's one thing that drives this government, it's our ambition to deliver a decent pay rise for working Australians, and there are some pretty simple reasons why that is—not just because Australian workers both need and deserve a pay rise but also because good, sustainable wage growth is good for our economy. Our policies provide workers on low and middle incomes facing the pressure of inflation and interest rates with a way to also get pay rises, and the best way to do this is by encouraging more agreements to be made and stopping the race to the bottom on wages.

But Australia's bargaining system has not worked effectively for a very long time—in fact, I would say for about 10 years. Only 15 per cent of employees are covered by an in-term agreement, and we want to make more agreements that benefit both employers and workers, rather than continue the conflict that we've seen over the last 10 years. Agreements allow trade-offs and provide a more simple and tailored set of conditions than the award, which benefits small business. To give one example of how this benefits small business, Jane has been an early childhood educator for 40 years. She's now the director of an early childhood education centre in Melbourne. She is incredibly passionate about her job, but it has been a tough industry to dedicate her life to. As the director of her centre she has faced constant struggles with staffing shortages, due to low wages and conditions in the sector. Jane and her sector, along with workers in 70 other sectors in Victoria, now benefit from being part of a multi-employer agreement, and not only have they won wages up to 18 per cent above the award; they've also won more things, like planning and professional development— (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sterle, first supplementary?

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister outline how some of the commentary around the government's workplace relations policies is just plain wrong?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd love nothing more than to point out how some of the commentary about our policies is just plain wrong. For nearly 10 years, wages were kept low as a deliberate design feature of the previous government's management of the economy, and the scare campaigns being run now by those with vested interests are good media fodder but are completely unfounded. Let's fact-check some of the claims that have been made over the last couple of weeks by the coalition and some of their supporters. First of all they say there'll be coast-to-coast strikes, ignoring the fact that nothing in relation to the system for industrial action at all will change compared to the system that was under the former government, except for the fact that there will now be a requirement for conciliation first—an additional requirement before industrial action occurs.

Claims are being made that we'll see pattern bargaining. Again, there are no changes compared to the legislation that existed under the former government. There are claims that businesses will be roped in to industrywide agreements—plain wrong, and Senator Brockman got skewered on that yesterday. The fact is that an employer can choose to be part of multi-employer bargaining— (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sterle, second supplementary.

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister outline to the chamber the safeguards and benefits of the government's policies for small and medium-sized businesses?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would love to do that, Senator Sterle, and thank you for giving me the opportunity to talk to the chamber about that. The Albanese Labor government's reforms and policies make bargaining more accessible for small and medium-sized businesses. It has been designed specifically to support those who are new to enterprise bargaining or are less equipped to navigate it. Small businesses often don't have the benefit of an HR department and can often be shut out of the benefits of enterprise bargaining that many medium- and larger-sized businesses enjoy. For those small businesses who do wish to bargain together, the cooperative bargaining stream is an attractive option as it's voluntary and they can opt in to the stream at any time.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You're going to cost them more!

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Isn't it ironic that the party of choice and individual choice over there doesn't want to give small businesses the choice to opt in to cooperative bargaining. They're all for choice except when it gives small businesses the choice—

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No way, really?

Sarah Henderson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let's send in the thugs to run the HR of small businesses!

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McGrath, exercise some self-control, please, along with Senator Henderson.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And even when a small business has employees who do want to have multi-employer bargaining, before that can occur it needs the majority of employees to agree and it needs the Fair Work Commission to find that there are common interests amongst those employers. This is good for workers and it's good for— (Time expired)

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that further questions be placed on notice.