ALP conference 2015: Getting tough on China FTA as jobs battle looms

Labor will escalate attacks on a free-trade deal with China in order to fight an election campaign on jobs and migration.

Labor will escalate its attacks on a free-trade deal with China in order to fight an election campaign on jobs and migration as it calls on the government to modify the deal to protect Australian workers.

Negotiations at Labor’s nat­ional conference prepare the ground for a fight against the deal with China — designed to boost $160 billion in annual two-way trade — all the way to the next election unless Trade Minister Andrew Robb ­accepts the opposition demands.

With unions already running a TV campaign against the China deal, Labor is ready to delay the agreement and continue its ­attacks in order to paint Tony ­Abbott as a threat to local jobs.

During backroom talks at the ­national conference it was agreed the trade agreement had to be ­adjusted to make it clear employers had to look for Australian workers before trying to bring in migrants. At issue is the provision in the China-Australia free-trade agreement to allow Chinese investors to apply for skilled migration visas for Chinese nationals to work on projects in Australia.

There is no cap on the number of workers who could be brought in — just as there is no cap on the existing 457 visa for skilled workers — and employers would have to pay Australian wages.

The government accused Labor trade spokeswoman Penny Wong of misleading voters when she claimed yesterday that new agreements would not involve ­labour market testing, the process that asks employers to look for Australian workers before bringing in others from overseas.

Assistant Immigration Minister Michaelia Cash released a flow-chart showing the application process includes a requirement that employers show a “demonstrated labour market need” for the visas.

“There are multiple requirements and safeguards to ensure Australians are given first opportunity in the recruitment process,” Senator Cash said. “Labour market analysis must be undertaken, annual reviews must be conducted, training for Australian employees will be ­delivered.”

That assurance failed to mollify critics who have claimed that the safeguards will be too soft and the existing weaknesses in the 457 visa program will be exacerbated.

The federal head of the Construction Forestry Mining and ­Energy Union, Michael O’Connor, labelled the China agreement a “dud deal” that would be a “disaster” for Australia because it weakened protections for workers.

“We don’t want to see workers and families being destroyed by actions of their own government,” he told the conference.

“This campaign’s not about trade. This campaign is about stopping greedy bastards trying to ­destroy Australian jobs.”

Australian Manufacturing Workers Union national secretary Paul Bastian told the conference that the trade deal had to include enforceable labour standards to avoid exploitation.

The government wants federal parliament to approve the China agreement before the end of the year.

Electrical Trades Union ­national secretary Allen Hicks vowed a “massive campaign” against the deal if Mr Robb did not accept amendments, saying the unions would take “every possible step” to force the changes. The Labor conference formalised the tougher stand against the trade deal in its current forms by accepting amendments moved by Mr O’Connor and others to insist upon tougher labour safeguards.

The conference also amended the party platform to influence ­future Labor governments to block the use of Investor State Dispute Settlement tribunals, which allow companies to take legal ­action against governments. While this is secondary to the Labor campaign on safeguards for workers, it sets up another ground for the opposition to reject the China agreement.

Parliamentary secretary for trade Steve Ciobo attacked Bill Shorten for falling into line with his “union masters” on trade.

“It’s clear that Labor is trying to turn trade policy back 30 years,” Mr Ciobo said.