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

Senator WATT (Queensland—Minister for the Environment and Water) (12:02): I think this part of the discussion stems from you putting forward the situation where I think what you called 'fringe cases' might be provided to the commission. What I'm saying is that the commission, when making its decision, will consider all of the evidence and will come up with a fair and reasonable decision.

But, yes, we are seeking to tell the commission in this bill that it can't cut penalty rates from a modern award—just as I'm sure I could find you a couple of hundred other sections in the Fair Work Act which give the commission direction about what it can and can't do. But then they operate within those boundaries to consider the facts of a particular case to make a decision.