Senator McEWEN (2:56 PM) —My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Senator Ludwig. Would the minister provide the Senate with an update on progress by the Australian government in processing employment agreements? What arrangements are in place for individual employment arrangements in the future?

Senator LUDWIG (Minister for Human Services) —I thank Senator McEwen for the question. I am pleased to report to the Senate that, of the 337,000 agreements lodged under the previous government’s fairness test, some 281,000 have now been finalised, 15,500 are back with employers to provide further information or for amendments to meet the requirements of the act and the Workplace Authority is making good progress in finalising the remaining agreements.

The previous government announced its so-called fairness test on 7 May 2007. However, senators may recall that agreements could not be accessed from that time until the legislation was enacted, and it came into effect some two months later on 1 July 2007. Of course, what that did was create an immediate backlog of 54,000 agreements the Workplace Authority could not access because the former government had not told the authority or anyone else what that test was.

The Rudd government is providing a secure future for working families, and now almost 85 per cent of agreements lodged under the fairness test have been finalised. Since 28 March 2008, the Workplace Authority has received some 54,000 agreements, of which 50,700 are individual transitional employment agreements—or ITEAs—to be assessed under the Labor government’s no disadvantage test. The authority has finalised the processing of some 15,600 agreements. This means, of course, that more than 74,000 workers have now had their workplace agreements passed under the new no disadvantage test. These 74,000 workers are the first beneficiaries of the Rudd Labor government’s reinstatement of a decent, comprehensive safety net of wages and conditions to underpin agreement making. After the people of Australia delivered their thumping, unequivocal verdict on Work Choices and AWAs in last year’s election, we all thought AWAs were a thing of the past. But the Liberal Party have not made up their mind. Last February they said, ‘We’re prepared to die in a ditch over individual statutory agreements.’ The then coalition sensibly recognised the government’s clear mandate for change and voted to support our transitional legislation to end AWAs.

But the previous opposition spokesperson was at it again. Speaking to a conference in Melbourne, Ms Bishop said, ‘Statutory individual contracts must form part of a modern workplace.’ That was her quote. But what does this mean? Let us be clear. Individual statutory contracts means contracts that an individual employee can be required to sign as a condition of getting a job, a transfer or a promotion and that can strip away basic award conditions, take away rights or stop employees bargaining at the enterprise level. Individual statutory agreements equal AWAs.

Of course, today we heard that Mr Malcolm Turnbull has rewarded Ms Julie Bishop’s extreme IR agenda by promoting her to be shadow Treasurer. Do the Liberals opposite us want Work Choices or not? Let me hear your chorus. Do you want Work Choices or not? They are silent on the issue. They do not know where they stand. Do they want laws that strip the take-home pay of Australian working families or not? Do they want that or not? That is the question. (Time expired)

Senator McEWEN —Mr President, I have a supplementary question for Senator Ludwig. Can the minister provide further information on Labor’s Forward with Fairness initiatives and, in particular, on award modernisation?

Senator LUDWIG (Minister for Human Services) —I thank the senator for her supplementary question, because it gives me the opportunity of congratulating the new opposition spokesperson Mr Keenan on his elevation to the shadow ministry. But he must immediately answer this threshold question: is he in favour of individual statutory contracts or not? Is he in favour of modernising awards?

Opposition senators interjecting—

The PRESIDENT —Senator Ludwig, address your comments to the chair and not across the chamber. Those on the other side should not—

Senator Abetz —Take the bait.

The PRESIDENT —take the bait. I think that is very well said.

Senator LUDWIG —Thank you, Mr President. I apologise for that. It is a question: are the Liberals now backsliding into Work Choices or not? That is the real question that they have been unable to answer. While the Liberals persist with their failed policies of the past on industrial relations—and they have continued to persist—Labor will move forward. It will take forward its modernising agenda. It will ensure awards are modernised. We will implement a policy that ensures we will have fair industrial relations systems— (Time expired)