Queensland opposes ‘reckless’ national labour hire plan
Queensland’s Crisafulli LNP government has slammed federal Labor’s ‘reckless’ decision to back Victoria as the host jurisdiction for national labour hire regulation.
Queensland has slammed the Albanese government’s “reckless” decision to endorse Victoria as the host jurisdiction for national labour hire regulation, refusing to support the federal plan given the serious allegations of labour hire corruption and misuse “led by the CFMEU”.
Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie has written to federal Workplace Relations Murray Watt opposing the federal plan for a harmonised approach for national labour hire regulation, saying he could not endorse Victoria as the host jurisdiction responsible for the passage of a model law and running an independent statutory body modelled on the Victorian Labour Hire Authority.
“I can confirm that the Queensland government does not support harmonisation of the labour hire licensing scheme at this stage, particularly having Victoria as the host jurisdiction,” he wrote, adding the Albanese Government’s endorsement of Victoria was “reckless”
Mr Bleijie said Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan recently labelled the state’s construction sector as having a “rotten culture” and pointed to an independent review which identified Victoria’s labour hire licensing scheme as a “problematic area”.
He cited a second review which made allegations of the infiltration of the CFMEU by organised crime figures and bikies in Victoria’s labour hire industry.
“In light of the serious allegations of systematic labour hire workplace practices of corruption and abuse led by the CFMEU in the construction industry, it is evident Victoria should not be leading the nation and regulating labour hire licensing,” he said.
“The Crisafulli government is committed to bolstering productivity and ensuring workers have access to a workplace that is safe and promotes fair working conditions. Under a Victorian-led labour hire licensing scheme, this will simply not be possible.”
In response to the comments, Senator Watt said work on the labour hire harmonisation model had been ongoing for some time, with productive collaboration by state and territory ministers and the Commonwealth.
“ I am surprised the new LNP Queensland government does not support harmonisation, given it has been called for by farmers, meat processors, labour hire firms, unions and many others who understand the problems in the current system,” he said.
“We will continue to work cooperatively with states and territories towards a common sense outcome.”
Mr Bleijie cited a number of concerns with the Victorian approach, including the prescriptive nature of Victoria’s “fit and proper person” test that meant criminals had been granted labour hire licences.
“The Victorian Labour Hire Authority itself has noted that it has been required to consider that people are ‘fit and proper’ in cases where an applicant has been convicted and imprisoned for serious offences that are not defined,” he said.
“While it is my understanding the proposed model laws aim to address these issues (for example, by adopting Queensland’s fit and proper person test), the fact remains that these shortcomings occurred over a lengthy period, without consideration by the Victorian Labour Hire Authority as to whether these shortcomings were promoting the alleged systemic abuse of Victoria’s labour hire industry.
“In light of these findings, I have no confidence in the Victorian government’s regulatory functions and capabilities, and as Deputy Premier and Minister for Industrial Relations it would be irresponsible to entrust the Victorian government with oversight of a national labour hire model. Any such support could be damaging for workers, who are already vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.
Mr Bleijie queried why Senator Watt, as Workplace Relations Minister, was supporting the Victorian government to “lead the nation in labour hire at a time when (the state) is responding to calls to fix the integrity of its own labour hire framework”.
“It is my priority to protect Queensland businesses and their workers and to ensure the safety of all Queenslanders,” he said.
“While I note the proposed benefits of reducing red tape and regulation for industry, these are far outweighed by the risks incurred adopting a Victorian-led national regulatory framework.”
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