I joined the Australian Labor Party because I believe that everyone deserves a fair go.
I feel passionately about the rights of workers and am proud to be part of a Government that is committed to a workplace relations system that provides workers with a strong safety net.
The Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations introduced our substantive workplace relations legislation, the Fair Work Bill 2008, into Parliament in November 2008.
The Fair Work Bill completely replaces the Workplace Relations Act, including the extreme and complex WorkChoices amendments.
Essentially, the Fair Work Bill creates a workplace relations system that will be applied nationally. The Bill is far-reaching and introduces a system that is fair to workers and flexible to business while promoting productivity and economic growth.
This Bill guarantees a safety net of fair, relevant, and enforceable minimum terms and conditions for Australian workers that can no longer be undermined by the making of statutory individual employment agreements of any kind, given such agreements can never be part of a fair workplace relations system.
The Government promised and has delivered:
· a fair and comprehensive safety net of minimum employment conditions;
· a system that has at its heart bargaining in good faith at the enterprise level;
· protections from unfair dismissal for all employees;
· protection for the low-paid;
· the ability to balance work and family life; and
· the right to be represented in the workplace.
Creating a workplace relations system based on trust, certainty and fairness is essential if we’re going to remain a nation of innovation and rising prosperity. Our workplace relations reforms are about workplace fairness and certainty – but they’re also about lifting national productivity.
The Fair Work Bill commenced on 1 July 2009. Consistent with election policy commitments, this new productive workplace relations system is now fully operational.
