Page 1491 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 18 May 1993
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Industrial Relations - Ambit Claims
MS ELLIS: Madam Speaker, my question is directed to the Deputy Chief Minister in his capacity as Minister for Industrial Relations. The Leader of the Opposition last week claimed on ABC radio that a log of claims served on the ACT Government by the United Firefighters Union and the subsequent filing of a dispute were remarkable and a huge time waster. Is there any basis to these claims, and could the Minister inform - - -
Mr Kaine: Just put in the same log of claims to the Remuneration Tribunal for us if they are - - -
MS ELLIS: I would really appreciate it, Madam Speaker, if my question could be heard by the Assembly.
Mr De Domenico: He already knows what the question is. He has the answer ready.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order, please!
MS ELLIS: Is there any basis to these claims, and could the Minister inform the Assembly of the regular process for the serving of logs of claims?
MR BERRY: This is a beaut question because it shows up again the double standards of the Liberal Party and, in particular, of its new leader, Mrs Carnell. Of course, it is an unremarkable claim. It is the same as dozens of other claims which have been made by other unions.
Mr De Domenico: What a waste of time!
MR BERRY: Of course it is not a waste of time. The process under the Federal Industrial Relations Act is clear, and it is one that has been followed by many unions in the past. One of those unions, of course, is the Salaried Pharmacists Association. The Salaried Pharmacists Association served a claim on the Pharmacy Guild, and of course Mrs Carnell is a senior officer of the Pharmacy Guild.
Here are some of the things that the Pharmacists Association asked for. They asked for $150,000 a year for a manager of a pharmacy. They wanted superannuation of 25 per cent, hours of work to be 25 hours per week - that is not bad - a $30 meal allowance, 10 weeks' paid annual leave and $1,000 per week performance pay. You are not going to earn $1,000 performance pay - no way, Jose. They also wanted five weeks per year on full leave for professional training and a preference clause. Why was Mrs Carnell not paying attention when these pieces of paper went across the desk? They want a preference clause, child-care paid for by the employer and each pharmacist to be provided with a fully maintained motor vehicle. Listen to it. What a double standard!
Double standards have never been foreign to Mrs Carnell. Let us have a look at what Mrs Carnell has said in the past in relation to self-government. She is a member of a party that is committed to self-government. Then she wants to be the flavour of the month in relation to town councils. Heaven knows what she will come up with next. This is just another example of those double
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