STATUTES AMENDMENT AND REPEAL (TAFE SA CONSEQUENTIAL PROVISIONS) BILL

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 5 April 2012.)

Mr PISONI (Unley) (16:58): This bill is all about dealing with what we have just been dealing with. I do not want to take too much time of the parliament, other than to foreshadow that I have some amendments—and I think they have been circulated—in regard to the bill that I am hoping the minister may consider between the houses. I thought that I would introduce them at this level at this time to give the minister some time to consider them. I will talk to them in a bit more detail when we move into committee.

The Hon. T.R. KENYON (Newland—Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for Recreation and Sport) (16:59): This is a fairly consequential bill which helps to give effect to the bill we have just passed. I look forward to moving through the committee stage with the member for Unley.

Bill read a second time.

Committee Stage

In committee.

Clauses 1 to 7 passed.

Clause 8.

Mr PISONI: I move:

Page 5, lines 3 and 4 [clause 8(1)]—Delete subclause (1)

Basically, the effect is the same with all these amendments. What I am wishing to achieve by moving these amendments and having the government accept these amendments is to open up the process of employee representation. Wherever there is an exclusive right that has been given to the Australian Education Union, that right will be given to all employees to participate in that process.

So, if it is a representative role as an employee, at the moment, that is limited to a member of the Australian Education Union. What these amendments will do is enable that representative to be any employee of TAFE SA, and it will have implications in other areas where there are exclusive rights given to the Australian Education Union.

One of the reasons why I think the time is right for such an amendment is that we saw the ABS figures released just two weeks ago now, and overall union membership in Australia and in South Australia—it is pretty well the same state by state—is now at 18 per cent. In the public sector, on average, fewer people in the public sector are members of a union than are not members of a union. The average union membership in the public sector is 43 per cent. If we look at the private sector separately, it is only 13 per cent.

Even if we look at the public sector figures, on average, we can see that, in fact, only 43 per cent are members of unions. So, every year, more and more people are excluded from participating in any democratic processes that TAFE has. Whether it be through representation in decision-making or elsewhere, it excludes those people who are not members of the union.

It is, in fact, costly to be a member of the Australian Education Union. The fee itself is 0.88 per cent of annual salary, plus a national organisation fee of $42.40 that members pay annually. We know that there are more and more price pressures on families. We know that the cost of living is going up for many, many families—not just the battlers. People on middle salaries and higher are also facing more difficulty in meeting those power and water bills, and even day-to-day shopping.

I would not like to think that, for instance, somebody earning a teaching salary of $83,000 a year would have to find an annual fee of $72.80 in order to participate in the process that is available to Australian Education Union members but nobody else. So, there is no politics in this amendment; it is simply about fairness for all employees of TAFE so that nobody is excluded from participating simply because they have not paid a union fee. I seek leave to insert statistical data that relates to the fees that union members must pay to be members of the Australian Education Union.

Leave granted.

Permanent or contract over 12 months

The Hon. T.R. KENYON: I am not prepared to accept the amendments put up by the member for Unley. I do so for two reasons. The first reason is that the operating principle I brought to this bill is to make as few changes as possible to the current arrangements that exist in TAFE. One of the arrangements that currently exists in TAFE is access to the Teachers Appeal Board and other arrangements, and the constitution of that board and other arrangements are set out in the Education Act. I am not seeking to change those because they are currently in place and changing them is not essential to making TAFE a statutory authority. That is the first reason. It is part of a deliberate effort on my part to have minimal change, to do what we need to do to make it a public corporation and not much more than that.

The second reason is that there would be a lot of impracticality involved in what the member for Unley is suggesting, and it is not necessarily a reason not to do it. Having an election within the employees of TAFE makes it harder and more costly, and it takes a longer time to go through that process. A future minister may choose to do that. There may be amendments made to the Education Act that would change that anyway but, as I said, my view is that we should just do what we need to do to make TAFE a public corporation and no more than that.

Mr PISONI: Can the minister clarify if there is in fact an election required now for AEU members to be placed on these positions through the regulations?

The Hon. T.R. KENYON: I have to confess that I do not have a thorough understanding of the Education Act, being that it is not my act. It may be that there have to be elections already, but, again, really what I am seeking to do is, where I can, maintain current arrangements and only make changes to those arrangements that are necessary to make TAFE a public corporation.

The member for Unley has outlined why he would like to do what his amendments would seek to do. They are arguments for him to make, but my view is that they are not essential to creating TAFE as a public authority, and therefore I am not prepared to support them.

The ACTING CHAIR (Hon. M.J. Wright): We have amendment No. 1 from the member for Unley. It is my understanding that the following amendments, which will also be moved by the member for Unley, are consequential to the success or otherwise—

Mr PISONI: Yes, that is right; they have the same effect.

The Hon. T.R. KENYON: With your indulgence, Mr Acting Chairman, I am advised that, yes, there is an election process already within the Education Act.

Amendment negatived; clause passed.

Clause 9.

Mr PISONI: My amendment to clause 9 and subsequent amendments are all consequential.

The ACTING CHAIR (Hon. M.J. Wright): Member for Unley, you are advising that you do not wish to proceed with the other amendments?

Mr PISONI: Not now.

Clause passed.

Remaining clauses (10 to 17), schedules and title passed.

Bill reported without amendment.

Third Reading

The Hon. T.R. KENYON (Newland—Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for Recreation and Sport) (17:13): I move:

That this bill be now read a third time.

Again, I wish to thank all members for their contributions, the department and my staff, and I look forward to the speedy passage of this bill.

Bill read a third time and passed.