Wednesday, 8 March 2023

 John BERGER (Southern Metropolitan) (18:06): (84) My adjournment is to the Minister for Industrial Relations in the other place Tim Pallas. I rise to contribute on a topic close to my heart: transport workers. The Transport Workers Union has been negotiating on an enterprise agreement for the past three years on behalf of workers at Rivet without a breakthrough, so today the brave Rivet refuellers walked off the job, exercising their right to freedom of association and the right to take protected industrial action. Something had to be done due to the company’s position on bargaining, and I say tonight: I am proud to be a member of a government that is committed to collaborative, collective bargaining, and it is our clear expectation that there is good faith in the bargaining process from employees, workers and their representatives.

This government recognises that workers have the right to take protected industrial action where the circumstances demand it, and we support the right of unions and their members to exercise those rights. Our government encourages parties to use the services of the Fair Work Commission. The commission is an independent umpire and has a key role to assist the parties in a dispute. Our government is committed to ensuring workers get the benefit of fair pay for their labour across all parts of the economy, not just in the public sector. That is why in the 2022–23 Victorian budget funding was provided to a range of industrial relation initiatives designed to fix inequalities faced by workers across our state, including through reforms to the on-demand economy, funding the Wage Inspectorate Victoria and provisioning for the worker sick pay guarantee.

Returning to the Rivet dispute, Qantas recently made a $1.4 billion half-year profit, and yet they are determined to rort workers. While these workers are getting Qantas planes into the air, they have not had a pay rise in three years. It is time for the airlines to come to the table. This is a company that sacked a competent workforce and sought to re-engage employees at far reduced wages and conditions – and then spring this one. I call on Qantas to come to the table, treat workers with dignity, listen to their concerns about increased workloads, unmanageable rosters and uncertainty over hours and take a moment to hear the issues on allocation of worker overtime and working on rostered days off. With record interest rates, workers should not be feeling the pinch while the company is enjoying sizable profits.

Finally, I want to pay tribute to the work of the national secretary of the Transport Workers Union Michael Kaine, branch assistant secretary of the transport workers Vic/Tas branch Mem Suleyman, senior organiser Dissio Markos and the countless delegates who will never stop fighting for workers. So my question to the Minister for Industrial Relations is: what is the government doing to support workers, and what other plans does it have going forward to strengthen workers rights?