Prime Minister backs ‘right to disconnect’ as IR bill negotiated
The Federal Government appears to be closing in on a deal with key crossbenchers to pass a raft of new IR laws, including a new 'right to disconnect'. The laws would enshrine a right for employees to switch-off from emails, texts and phone calls from their workplace after-hours.
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TVTranscript
00:00 This legislation that the government wants to pass will essentially allow employers to
00:06 still contact their staff outside of work hours, whether that be via phone, text or
00:12 email.
00:13 But the change would be that the workers would simply be able to ignore it and they won't
00:18 be able to be punished for doing so.
00:20 Now we know also as part of this legislation there is a recognition that there can be some
00:29 good reasons for employees to be contacted, whether that be for shift changes or work
00:35 emergencies.
00:37 We know that this right to disconnect is part of a broader industrial relations legislation
00:43 that the government wants to pass through Parliament.
00:46 Also part of that legislation is some new rules around introducing minimum standards
00:54 for Uber drivers and gig workers.
00:57 We heard from the Prime Minister a little earlier today about the right to disconnect
01:01 part of this legislation.
01:02 Here's what he had to say.
01:04 What we're simply saying is that someone who's not being paid 24 hours a day shouldn't be
01:10 penalised if they're not online and available 24 hours a day.
01:16 And indeed many companies and businesses have exactly these systems in place now.
01:24 Now that's the Prime Minister there around this right to disconnect part of the legislation.
01:29 We know that the Coalition won't be supporting it.
01:32 They say that this right to disconnect goes too far.
01:35 We heard from Liberal Senator Jane Hume a little earlier.
01:38 Here's what she had to say.
01:40 This government just loves making rules.
01:42 They love making laws, don't they?
01:44 About things that in all honesty should be common sense, should just be a polite conversation
01:50 between employers and employees.
01:53 If we're genuine about flexible workplaces, if we're genuine about allowing people to
01:57 take time off to go and pick up their kids from school for instance, well then I think
02:01 we've got to have sensible conversations about what rights and obligations exist between
02:06 employers and employees.
02:08 So Monty that's what the Coalition thinks.
02:10 What have the crossbenchers had to say?
02:13 As you heard there, Joe, the Coalition certainly aren't supporting this.
02:17 The government has had to look towards the crossbench to get this through Parliament.
02:21 The Greens are on board.
02:22 This right to disconnect idea actually was a Greens idea that they negotiated into the
02:27 bill so they're voting for it.
02:29 We know that Lydia Thorpe, the independent senator from Victoria is also voting for it.
02:34 So that just leaves the government one vote short in the Senate to get this legislation
02:40 through Parliament.
02:41 They've been doing some quite consistent and a lot of negotiations with Jackie Lambie from
02:48 Tasmania and David Pocock from the ACT.
02:52 Now we understand that those negotiations are pretty close to having a positive resolution
02:58 for the government.
02:59 We heard from both of those senators earlier today around this right to disconnect.
03:04 Here's what they had to say.
03:06 Nobody has ever spoken to me in the 10 years I've been in and out of politics about phone
03:11 calls after hours.
03:13 Not one person.
03:14 Even going through this, not one person.
03:17 And I've been out there with my boots on the ground because I'm running a team in Tasmania
03:22 for the state election.
03:23 Not one person has mentioned anything about that.
03:25 Not ever.
03:26 Clearly there are workers out there who want that right to not have to respond to unreasonable
03:33 requests from their bosses outside of work hours.
03:41 So some differing views there between Jackie Lambie and David Pocock.
03:46 So we understand that David Pocock is pretty close to getting a deal with the government
03:51 so we'll certainly be keeping across the developments as they happen when this legislation goes
03:57 to a vote in Parliament.
03:58 [BLANK_AUDIO]