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Libs still evasive on IR laws
Date: 26 November 2008
Malcolm Turnbull has failed to come clean about where the Federal Opposition really stands on restoring key rights for workers that were taken away by WorkChoices.
Mr Turnbull is hedging his bets about opposing the Fair Work Bill by saying the Liberals will seek amendments in the Senate, unions say.
ACTU President Sharan Burrow said Mr Turnbull's declaration that the Liberals would support the Bill in the lower house was meaningless, and he was deliberately being evasive about what amendments they would seek in the Senate.
"Working Australians should remain very suspicious of the Liberals," Ms Burrow said.
"This is the party that brought us WorkChoices and that still believes in individual contracts and taking away workers' rights, including protection from unfair dismissal.
"The passage through Parliament of the Fair Work Bill would be a major step towards reversing more than a decade of attacks on workplace rights.
"It would ensure that collective bargaining is the foundation of our workplace relations system, allowing workers to stand shoulder to shoulder to improve their wages and conditions.
"But WorkChoices won't be dead until the Fair Work Bill is passed intact by the Senate - and that is far from assured given the reluctance of the Liberals to commit to supporting specific elements.
"It's well known that behind closed doors, there is a large section of the Liberal and National parties who remain wedded to WorkChoices, and there will be enormous pressure to water down the Bill.
"We have already seen media reports today that former Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson feels that individual contracts and unfair dismissal exemptions for small business are 'pillars of belief'."
Ms Burrow said many Liberal frontbenchers are also on the record as strongly supporting WorkChoices and the policy of removing unfair dismissal rights for workers in small businesses.
"A year ago, Australians said they had had enough of the unfair IR policies of the Coalition.
"But the fundamental question remains: will the Liberals support the full restoration of workers' rights, or will they put working people last again?" Ms Burrow said.
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