Treasury Laws Amendment (Payday Superannuation) Bill 2025, Superannuation Guarantee Charge Amendment Bill 2025
Mr GREGG (Deakin) (10:16): The amount of unpaid super owed to workers in my electorate of Deakin was $31.4 million, according to analysis by the Super Members Council in 2022-23. The analysis also highlighted that that's $1.4 billion of lost super for workers in my home state of Victoria and a whopping $5.7 billion for workers across Australia. We're talking about a lot of money earned by workers owed to workers; it's not sitting in their superannuation accounts.
It is an unacceptable and unsustainable situation. This is a problem we've known about for a long time. There has been report after report, including the 2020 review into retirement savings initiated by the coalition, and likewise.
This is a well-known problem. The risks are increased when we're talking about small businesses with low turnover approaching insolvency and workers who are young and vulnerable, and we've seen the consequences play out in a very real way. Not only do we not have the wonderful magic of compound interest playing; we also have a significant loss of insurance coverage, which we've seen many cases of—for example, people not having the permanent disability or income protection insurance that they would ordinarily have, because contributions that were lawfully required to be made weren't paid.
We've also seen situations where a person who may be eligible to withdraw their superannuation on compassionate grounds, such as upon the death of a spouse or dependent, have not been able to access super, because, once again, the money simply hasn't been put into the account. This isn't money that is given as a gift to workers; this is money earned, owed and part of their remuneration—and, unfortunately, on a mass scale, hasn't been received.
These are debts that need to be claimed in a better, more efficient and effective way, and this bill provides that means. This bill is the commonsense approach. When I talk to people in my electorate, they wonder why it hasn't already happened and why it isn't already the case that superannuation has to be paid into the worker's account at the same time as they receive their wages.
After all, remuneration isn't a business credit facility. It's not there as a loan to pay for other expenses. It is a debt owed to workers.
This legislation sensibly adjusts that, and I welcome the fact that at least that principle has been adopted by many people in the coalition. Unfortunately, as I walked past this chamber last night I overheard the contribution of the member for Goldstein, who decided to pop on the tinfoil hat, pull out the coathanger and start speaking in fluent crazy. He went on and on about serfdom and the fact that superannuation was some kind of a conspiracy by the Labor Party to line its own pockets.
He said the pre-1992 position on superannuation was somehow more logical. Why? Superannuation did the daring thing of saying that working people had a right to a share in capital wealth.
It was the idea that it wasn't just the wealthy or those lucky enough to be with certain employers who got the benefits of superannuation but every single wage earner in the country. It was one of the most important reforms to working life in the twentieth century—and they simply don't get it. I wouldn't be so bold as to presume that it's Liberal Party policy.
We all know for a fact that the Liberal Party and the coalition have many different policies simultaneously at the moment, because they can't seem to agree on anything. But one of the saddest things about the member for Goldstein's contribution was that, if that is the sensible centre of the Liberal Party, God help us all! It shows that even their moderates have jumped onto the crazy train, not knowing where they're going.
We find that superannuation remains something that causes them heartburn. They hate the idea that workers are in the system, somehow getting their place in the boardroom and taking their opportunity to take their fair share of the wealth of this great country. Superannuation is essential because it is compulsory—the fact that we are together saving for our retirements.
We're not relying on the aged pension, which has never provided the quality of life we expect and hope for our older citizens. In order to live a comfortable and decent life as an older person, as we live longer, as we grow as an ageing population, it's more essential than ever that we look after our superannuation system, we jealously guard it and we make sure all Australians have access to the dignified retirement that they deserve.
Unfortunately, we've seen some immature debates around what superannuation is for. Is it going to be an alternative to fixing the housing crisis? Is it something that should be withdrawn at will at the last minute to pay for certain things?
Is it something we have decided is essential for the saving of retirement amounts for all workers? I think it's the latter; I believe it's there to provide a dignified retirement to workers as they age. Most Australians agree.
They know it's there, they value the system and they have received the benefits. In my electorate of Deakin, we've got an increasing number of people aged over 65 and a decreasing number of people on the aged pension. Superannuation is working.
It is delivering a better quality of life for Australians all around the country at all income levels. It is doing exactly what it is designed to do. We can't afford to have any process or change that is going to undermine the accumulation of superannuation savings over time.
But, sadly, that remains an item of contention from time to time in this House. Luckily, this approach, payday super, reflects common sense. From what I can tell, even from the amendments with the usual dose of nuttiness, there is at least consensus on the notion that payday super is a way of ensuring workers are getting the amounts they are owed and deserve, that we can safeguard some of our most vulnerable workers from losing the superannuation they've already earned and that we have better capability of enforcing against noncompliance with superannuation guarantee obligations.
We've seen many, many occasions where unpaid super going over years is not being repaid. Workers, because of the way the information is delivered to them, can barely tell whether or not superannuation has been paid at a particular time, because they can't just pick up any old payslip and find out whether it's happened—so they find themselves in a situation where it's not being called out in time.
By the time they find out they have not been paid, the company has either gone into administration or ceased to exist, and the capacity for that worker to recover either through the ATO or directly has completely expired. We need to get to the point where workers can be confident that the money they've earned has been paid. It is not a controversial ask.
But, for some reason, as is often the case in this House, we are seeing some rather strange and eclectic contributions. Among them last night was the conspiracy about what super is— Mr Chester: Like Matt Keogh in question time! Mr GREGG: It is the ultimate— Mr Chester: Don't listen to me!
Mr GREGG: I should know better than to listen to the member for Gippsland. I have to admit, I'm new to this place and I occasionally make the mistake of listening to members of the coalition. I mistake them for individuals who have credibility and make worthwhile contributions to debate.
This particular bill is a perfect example of one where the coalition have absolutely nothing to contribute to the debate. They have an atrocious record on superannuation. They see it as a lucky dip for their own policymaking rather than as an essential part of the retirement framework of this country.
The reality is: if we want the next generation to have a proper dignified retirement, we need to deal with housing, protect super and make sure that our institutions remain as strong and trustworthy as ever before. This is one of the great legacies of the Labor Party. Superannuation for workers finally gave the working people of Australia their fair share of the nation's wealth.
Anything designed to undermine that or to use it as a simple slush fund for taking over the consequences of coalition policy over a long time is completely unforgivable. We need to make sure that trust and confidence in the system can be preserved, and we need to get on with dealing with the fact that millions and millions of dollars have been shafted from workers over a long period of time.
I will not stand here and allow any suggestion that there is anything insidious about the idea that the workers in Deakin or anywhere in Australia, and their millions of dollars in savings—it is billions if you take it to the total for Australia, $5.7 billion. The idea of trying to ensure that that shafting doesn't happen anymore should be a completely uncontroversial proposition.
But, again, we have a little bit of the usual squabble and nuttiness that we have in this House. In terms of the enforcement of these things, we need to make sure that, when superannuation is not paid, the compound interest that could otherwise have been earned from those contributions is also recovered as part of the regime. In the past, we have seen superannuation recovered at just the nominal amount.
It's effectively stolen money because they have lost the real value of the superannuation contributions being made—the earnings that they would have received but for the failure to contribute. So these enforcement provisions and the penalties that sit within this legislation are eminently sensible. Then we talk about the transition.
The transitionary provisions contained within this legislation enable a period of time for business to adjust. The ATO have already given their draft guidance—I think it was on 21 October—which has made it very clear that they will be taking a facilitative approach to the enforcement of these new laws. We're not out to get businesses.
We're there to support them in transitioning their systems to ensure that this can be done right. This is not about punishing small businesses trying to do the right thing. The ATO has made that abundantly clear.
We have made that abundantly clear. This is simply about making sure that businesses are supported and enabled to make the payments that are owed to their workers in a reasonably timely way so they can enjoy the benefits of their earnings and have that beautiful magic of compound interest work in their favour as they save for their retirements. It's about ensuring a dignified and decent retirement for Australians.
It's about making sure that the promise of superannuation is fulfilled. And it's about safeguarding the superannuation of some of our most vulnerable workers. We're talking about young workers for whom the loss of superannuation income has dire consequences—tens of thousands of dollars less in their superannuation if these failures continue to persist.
We see differences in balances of $31,000, $32,000 and up to $35,000 if super isn't paid at my age, at around 35. It can have significant impacts on a superannuation balance at the end of a person's career. As I mentioned before, it is not just at the end of a career.
It is ensuring that these individuals continue to have the total and permanent disability insurance that they've signed up to, that they continue to have the income protection insurance and, in the worst-case scenario, that they have access to those funds on compassionate grounds, whether it be for emergency health care, for the funeral of loved ones or for the other reasons that are already provided for in legislation.
This is the money of workers. They deserve to have it paid into their superannuation accounts in a timely way. It is what the entire system is for.
The proposition that this is part of some crazy cabal, as was suggested by the member for Goldstein last night, is as outrageous as it is foolish. It is absolutely terrifying that a key member of their economic team sees superannuation as some kind of sick conspiracy and has the very idea that superannuation is simply about increasing the money in the Labor Party coffers.
By the way, this is a government that just passed laws capping the amount of money that can be put into coffers. This is simply about workers. The very notion of a piece of legislation being purely about benefiting employees seems to be shocking and outrageous to some in the coalition.
We need to protect and safeguard this system. We are dealing with an issue that was identified not only by us but by reports commissioned by the coalition themselves. They know this was a problem, and they did nothing about it.
We came here, stood up and made a number of changes to protect the sustainability and security of the superannuation system, and all we ask is that you just let us get on with it. These matters are too important to continue delaying. Ten more years of delay on these things will result in the loss of millions and millions of dollars of superannuation savings.
We need to get on with it. The sooner we pass it, the sooner business will have the certainty as to what's coming and the sooner they'll be able to prepare for the changes and be ready by the time this comes in in July next year. I commend the bill, and I express my complete dismay and contempt for the suggested amendments by the shadow Treasurer.
I look forward to this essential reform becoming law. Debate adjourned.