Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

I will disabuse the honourable senator, first of all: nobody has had a pay cut. It is a dishonest campaign that has been run. Let's be very clear on this: these guidelines apply to about 20 or so contracts. They sought to differentiate between offices requiring cleaning operated by the Commonwealth. They only operated in the capital cities, and so you had a differential between Penrith and Parramatta, and Comcare's office here in Canberra.

Is the Australian Labor Party today telling the Australian people that it is the government who should set pay rates and not the Fair Work Commission? You have a decision to make. Either you have confidence in the Fair Work Commission to determine what a fair rate of pay is for Australian workers, or you want the government to undertake the task. We as a government have said to the Australian people very clearly that we believe that the Fair Work Commission is the right forum, either with the modern awards or with the enterprise agreements that are determined as being appropriate. But it is for the Fair Work Commission to make that determination. The howl we have just witnessed from those opposite is a major vote of no confidence in the Fair Work Commission's capacity to determine an appropriate wage rate.

Furthermore, these guidelines required the scheduling of employee meetings with union officials. There was a requirement that union delegates attend all inductions. Even if the staff did not want a union official there— (Time expired)