Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee, , 5:18:12 to 5:24:29
Senator Hume questions the Fair Work Commission on when they first saw the draft of the technical amendments bill prior to its introduction.
Topics: Workplace relations, Law reform
Speakers: Murray Furlong, Senator Jane Hume, Senator Tony Sheldon, Senator Marielle Smith
Fellow, I want to ask some questions specifically referring to the last budget estimates.
Ever receiving advice, and in the normal course of things. Announcements.
When did the Commission first see a draft of that bill? Can you tell me whether you first saw a draft before you appeared at Senate estimates?
I'd seen sections of it and I have to take on notice because officers of the Fairworth Commission would most probably have had interactions with departmental officials about the nature and the prescription of those amendments. But I'm not too sure if we actually saw a full bill or sections of the bill prior to it being introduced. I can say that that one of the genesis of the bill, I attended the National Workplace Relations Consulted Council last year, and I handed out a document I think it's been done previously actually that outlined a series of interventions that technical amendments and my understanding is it was that basis that document that uh that the bill was crafted from.
So having seen elements of the bill prior to Senate estimates and yet not having referred to it. Were you specifically asked not to refer to it?
And we don't enter the policy conversation, so it wouldn't be a place in natural place for the Commission to go.
I understand that, which is why we were so surprised that there was not mention of it and that the media release occurred five minutes after this committee had adjourned and that it was introduced the next day, and that it was then guillotined before it passed, when had there not been one section in it that the government clearly knew was going to be a problem for the coalition in part nine, entirely irrelevant to what it is that the Fair Work Commission had specifically requested it needed. Had that not occurred, this wouldn't have been an issue, but clearly this was intentional. The fact that it needed to be guillotined was intentional. Because of the timing of the release of that legislation, the committee and I had never had the chance to ask you about the bill before it passed, something that I don't think is an unreasonable thing. So did the Commission make a submission or provide any written advice to the Minister or the Department on that bill.
We provided and as we as is customer practice over many, many years, decades in terms of my experience with these sorts of matters. Um we interacted with the department about the and provided technical advice on the operation of the proposed reforms. Um and those conversations were this is actually assist the Commission in dealing with your caseload by improving your efficiency efficacy of the institution. So that was the nature of those those conversations. Now that I was privy to, but in the normal course of things, I'm not privy to every conversation that's uh that's had um at the officer level between the the Fairworth Commission and the Department, but my understanding and it's reasonable to assume that there are significant number of conversations that would have occurred, interactions where uh where elements of the bill, whether or not it's the full bill, but certainly elements of the bill were were discussed.
Can I ask? I'm assuming that you think that the bill will assist the Fair Work Commission to deal with its backlog?
We the answer, yes, Senator. Um and we we're very thankful for the support of government and parliament in passing the legislation. We while it's still early days, we are seeing uh an improvement in the efficiency of our operations. And not just of our operations, but also the regulatory burden on the parties that come before us.
Sorry, didn't go away, or sorry. Through the chair, could we just have those the letters that were sent to um Mr. Crosby and uh oh they have come back? Sorry, I stepped out at the wrong time. My apologies. My double apologies.
That's right.
That's all right, I'll take up some of your tabled headings, various confirmations, but yes, please proceed, Senator Hume.