Senator FORSHAW(6.58 p.m.) —Tonight I wish to take a few minutes to comment on the double standards adopted by this government, particularly with respect to wage increases for building workers. Yesterday in question time, I asked the Minister representing the Minister for Industrial Relations, Senator Alston, whether he was aware of recent increases negotiated—I stress the word `negotiated'—in the industry by the employees, employers and their representatives.

I also asked the minister why it was that his government, particularly the Minister for Industrial Relations (Mr Reith) and the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology (Mr Moore), was interfering in the processes of negotiation in that industry in order to try to prevent those increases from being granted. What response did we get from Senator Alston? We got an acknowledgment that he was aware of it. But, beyond that, he clearly did not have any brief because he floundered around for some time trying to address the important issues raised in the question.

The important issue is: why is it that this government is so quick to jump in and try to kick the unions, particularly the building industry unions, but is so slack when it comes to addressing, for instance, the massive salary increases granted to executives? As Senator Alston went on in his rambling answer it became clear that his response was ideologically driven. Notwithstanding this government's protestations about a new era of industrial relations—a supposed new era where the government would not interfere, the market would be allowed to operate and employees and employers could get out there and freely negotiate—what we actually have on the first occasion an agreement is negotiated is the government getting stuck into the union and the workers.

Let us have a look at what has been said in this regard. On Wednesday, 27 November, it was reported in the Financial Review that the federal Minister for Industrial Relations, Mr Peter Reith, indicated that he would hold talks with employer groups and state and territory governments to forge a fresh approach to this issue. That is nothing more than rhetoric for calling in employers and the state and territory governments to put pressure on them not to agree to wage increases for building workers, and presumably any other workers, beyond the level that this government believes is appropriate.

The government has indicated that it believes that the only increase that is appropriate is a lousy increase of $8 per week for battlers. Yet the same government and the same minister have been waxing lyrical for a number of weeks about how their legislation is going to usher in a new era whereby employees can go out and negotiate more. This is the minister who tried to attack the previous government by alleging, quite wrongly, that workers had not seen real wage increases during the period of the Labor government. That is a quite fallacious claim which needs further discussion at another time. That claim is incorrect.

When it suits this government they want to talk about the rights of employees and employers to negotiate large increases and real increases. When you have a situation on a major construction project, such as that on the Sydney Olympics site, where the workers, their representatives and the company representatives negotiate increases, the government steps in and says, `It is too much. You should not get them.' They then get out the big stick and start beating the unions. They do that because there is a union involved.

Senator Alston said—and this is really what pins this government down to being motivated by an ideological hatred of trade unions members, particularly those members of the construction and building industry unions—yesterday:

Look, at the end of the day you either have to take a position on this or not. If your position is `Whatever the unions can screw out of management is fine by us', then we understand where you are coming from.

This minister does not actually know what is happening in the industry. Maybe he has an excuse because he is only the Minister representing the Minister for Industrial Relations. However, he really should know. This minister's whole attitude to a negotiated enterprise agreement is `the union screwed the employers'.

I thought this government actually wanted to encourage employees and employers to negotiate enterprise agreements. This is a government that said that employees have a right to be represented by trade unions and yet this is a government that, on the first occasion after its legislation has been passed—albeit it is not operative yet—and a group has negotiated an increase which the government does not like has hopped in and abused them and lampooned them by suggesting that it is nothing more than union power.

The facts are that, firstly, these increases have been negotiated because that is what the market can sustain. That has been acknowledged by the heads of the companies involved. I understood that this government claims that the market should prevail. They should not have any objection about the level of increases.

Secondly, this is an industry where the employees are involved in a dangerous occupation, particularly when it comes to high-rise buildings. Thirdly, this is an industry where employees could be considered, in many cases, to fall into the category of battlers. Whilst they might have high earnings from time to time, it is an intermittent industry. Security of employment in this industry is not guaranteed. Therefore, I believe that increases of this order, which will be phased in over three years and which involve significant productivity offsets as has been acknowledged if people take the time to look at the agreements, are warranted.

I conclude by saying that the double standards of this government have been exposed. They want to attack building workers. Yet last Friday, I attended the opening of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade building here in Canberra where the Prime Minister (Mr Howard) and the Minister for Administrative Services (Mr Jull) paid tribute—although I think begrudgingly—to the building workers who brought that building in on time and under budget. That has happened on construction project after construction project around Australia. I have great confidence that it will happen again on the Sydney Olympics site.

It is about time that the minister and this government stopped hopping into the workers, stopped hopping into the unions, and recognised the quality and the productivity of their work and of the entitlements to the wage increases that they have managed to negotiate.