Thursday, 24 March 2022

Sick pay guarantee

Ms SULEYMAN (St Albans) (17:16): (6303) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Workplace Safety in the other place. The action that I seek is for the minister to provide me with an update on how the Victorian sick pay guarantee will benefit the many working families across the electorate of St Albans. I know that in my electorate and across the west in particular we have many people with a high reliance on casual and insecure work. I welcome the government’s program of five-day sick and carers pay for casual and contract workers, a truly groundbreaking, innovative way forward for families right across the state and a first for this nation. The $245.6 million scheme will mean that over 150 workers in Victoria will be able to access the safety net that they need so that they can take time off when they are sick or take care of their loved ones when they need it most. Whether it is hospitality, cleaning or security workers, the front line in our fight with the pandemic, everyone deserves the dignity that fair work, pay and conditions provide.

I know that in my electorate families, without this sick pay guarantee, oftentimes are having to choose between attending work or staying back when they are sick, because it is about juggling the challenges of paying the rent or a mortgage and paying the bills. I know for a fact that in my electorate there is high reliance on whether it be hospitality, cleaning or contract work, and there really needs to be some stability for these workers. It would be good for families, and I think it would also ease some of the challenges and pressures in those particular types of employment.

We know that the last few years have created a tremendous challenge for working families, including contract workers and casual workers, through the insecurity of these workplaces. In particular, with the last two years of the pandemic, we need to make sure that Victorian workers and families have security. Even though it is a small blanket, it is a blanket that is needed by some of the families that are most vulnerable and who depend on day-to-day pay to get through the week. So I look forward to the minister’s response on this very important program for my community in St Albans.