Jana Stewart (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to talk about penalty rates. I want to talk about the people who work when the rest of us don't. I'm talking about hospital cleaners, supermarket staff, aged-care workers and those who serve us meals late into the night or the early hours of the morning. Their penalty and overtime rates aren't just a bonus; they're what pays the rent, keeps food on the table and gives peace of mind. Yet, time and time again, we've seen attempts to strip those rates away. We saw it in 2017 when Sunday and public holiday pays were cut. In Victoria's regional centres, like the Mallee and Nicholls, penalty rates aren't just a bonus; they're survival. Workers in our region alone lost up to $127 million a year, and local communities and businesses suffered the Liberal Party's inconsiderate decision. We see it again now, with big business proposals that look generous on paper but would scrap penalty rates in practice.

We on this side want to lock in protections for 2.6 million workers so that penalty rates cannot be bargained away by legal tricks or corporate loopholes and ensure the Fair Work Commission cannot approve any variation that leaves a single worker worse off.

For my mum, who cleans hospital wards in regional Victoria, those extra dollars from weekends or night shifts aren't extra; they're what help her to get by. It's the same story for millions of other working Australians.

This government has chosen its side. We are backing Australian workers. I say to those opposite: if you care about the regions, if you care about cost-of-living relief and if you believe in a fair day's pay for a fair day's work, you should back the Albanese Labor government's protection of penalty rates. Let's protect penalty and overtime rates, because that's what workers deserve. (Time expired)