Industrial Relations

The Hon. J.S. LEE (Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (15:03): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Industrial Relations about industrial relations matters.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: It was reported in The Australian that the Albanese Labor government had not consulted with business groups about its new industrial relations legislation before it went public with its multi-employer wage bargaining idea. The National Farmers' Federation isn't impressed with the wage bargaining bill and the proposed changes, and The Australian newspaper said that the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chief Executive Andrew McKellar and Business Council of Australia Chief Executive Jennifer Westacott also rejected the fresh concessions flagged by Labor.

Business groups fear that multi-employer bargaining will lead to strikes, wage rises unlinked to productivity and higher prices, which will feed into inflation. The matter is important—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the Hon. Mr Hunter and the Hon. Mr Wortley! Let's listen to the question.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: Not related to productivity.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the Hon. Mr Hunter and the Hon. Mr Wortley! Let's listen to the question.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! The Hon. Mr Hunter, are you looking for an early minute?

The Hon. J.S. LEE: Linked to productivity, mind you.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the government benches! I'm sure the Attorney will be more than capable of providing an answer.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Enough. Please conclude your question, and then let's get an answer. The Hon. Ms Lee has the call.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: Thank you, Mr President, for your protection.

The PRESIDENT: Attempted protection.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: This matter is really important to raise in this parliament because it impacts every business sector in South Australia.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. J.S. LEE: My questions to the minister are:

1. What consultation has the minister undertaken with employers' associations and business groups to ensure their views are heard?

2. What assurance can the minister provide to ensure that such a rushed piece of legislation does not lead to strikes and wage rises that are not linked to productivity in South Australia?

3. Will the minister stand up to protect businesses and jobs in South Australia, or does he agree with his federal colleagues on their old-world, union-inspired way of crafting legislation that has the potential to shut down our economy?

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: I call the Minister for Industrial Relations, and I'm not sure that he needs any help.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:06): I thank the honourable member for what sounded much more like a government question; nonetheless, it is remarkable. Firstly, I think the opposition has now officially jumped the shark. They have run out of things to say so much that they're asking questions about federal matters and federal legislation.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: There would be a very good argument that the honourable member is out of order.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Attorney, sit down.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! I want to hear the answer. His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, you are wasting your own question time, and you are wasting the crossbench's question time. The Attorney-General, please.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, this is a matter that wholly and squarely fits within federal legislation and a federal process. There would be an argument that the honourable member was out of order asking a question that a minister does not have a responsibility to this parliament for; however, be that as it may—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: —I'm prepared to talk to the honourable member about what seems to be a new Liberal Party policy to drive down wages. I think we have had revealed here a policy for the Liberal Party to drive down the wages of working people in South Australia. That seems to be the new policy. I've got to say we would be more than happy to go to the next election—

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: We would be more than happy to go to the next election with the Hon. Jing Lee and the Hon. David Speirs' policy to drive down wages as their sort of policy. We saw what happened to a former opposition leader who had a similar policy.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: Everyone remembers the policy of the former member for Heysen, Isobel Redmond—

The Hon. N.J. Centofanti interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the honourable Leader of the Opposition!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: —to sack 30,000 public servants—

The Hon. J.S. Lee interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order, the honourable Deputy Leader of the Opposition!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: —and we saw how that ended.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Have you concluded your remarks?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: No, sir. I'm just getting started.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! I think I would like to hear the Attorney-General's answer, and I am struggling to hear him.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: Point of order, Mr President.

The PRESIDENT: I will hear your point of order.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: We are talking about workers, and Hansard is probably finding this very hard to record.

The PRESIDENT: I am sure Hansard are finding it hard to record. Can I please listen to the minister's answer, and let's have some silence.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: I do appreciate the Hon. Jing Lee letting us know the new policy that workers should be paid less in their view. We saw what happened the last time the opposition came out with a similar policy targeting workers. The former member for Heysen, Isobel Redmond, who was opposition leader for a time, had a policy to sack 30,000 public sector workers. Many on our side, many crossbenchers, in this chamber will remember that policy and will remember this attack on workers in South Australia did not go well. So we are very pleased that the Hon. Jing Lee has reinvigorated a very similar policy for the South Australian Liberal opposition, and we will be more than happy to produce DLs, produce flyers, letting the public of South Australia know what the Liberal Party want for workers in this state.

The Hon. Jing Lee asked about interaction with business groups.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: We have massive interaction with business groups as a Labor government. Let me give you an example of an interaction with a business group.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: At the MBA awards recently, there were about half a dozen Labor members and ministers who attended those. As the media reported, the Leader of the Opposition apparently didn't attend because he didn't like the way he was invited to that event. This is how the Liberal opposition interact with business groups in South Australia. We will put our record about what we think of workers, whether we want to sack 30,000 public sector workers or drive down wages of workers in South Australia, and our interactions with business groups up against the record of the Liberal Party every single day of the week.