Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Penalty and Overtime Rates) Bill 2025

Senator WATT (Queensland—Minister for the Environment and Water) (11:42): The short answer is that it wouldn't change the situation for someone on that kind of agreement. One of the points we've been making in advocating for this change is that we are fine with employers, employees and unions negotiating terms that apply to a particular business. In that negotiation, it may be that the parties agree to make some changes to penalty rates in return for pay rises or that there are changes to conditions.

That's the nature of an agreement. But an award is different. What this legislation is about is the award.

The award sets the minimum safety net. What we're saying is that, when there hasn't been an agreement reached in a workplace, in that situation it shouldn't be possible to cut penalty rates—in the absence of that kind of negotiation or agreement. I think you mentioned your daughter's case, working for one of the major retailers.

They all have enterprise bargaining agreements that they've reached with their employees and typically with a union. That's the point we're making—if people want to discuss changes to penalty rates, changes to conditions and changes to wage rates in an enterprise-level way, then that should be done through an agreement rather than by taking away penalty rates from the minimum standards, which are set in an award.