2.1
This chapter lists the key topics discussed for each department and agency examined during the committee's hearings for Budget estimates 2021-22. Page numbers of the Proof Hansard for that day's hearing are indicated in brackets as a reference.
Attorney-General's portfolio, Industrial Relations matters – Tuesday, 1 June 2021
Attorney-General's Department
2.2
Both Senator the Hon. Michaelia Cash, Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations, and Mr Iain Anderson, Acting Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department, did not make an opening statement.
2.3
Topics discussed for the Industrial Relations Branch included:
Key issues Senator Cash will aim to address in her new role as
Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations (pp. 4-6)
The prevalence of insecure work in Australia and the extent to which that information is reflected in the employment data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (pp. 6-9)
The representation of gig-economy workers in ABS employment figures (pp. 10-13)
Casual conversion and the avenues for appeal available to a casual employee if an employer refuses their request (pp. 13-14 & 17-20)
Particulars of the recent Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia's Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2021 (IR omnibus bill) (pp. 15-17)
Workers incorrectly classified as independent contractors and the ability of the Fair Work Ombudsman to identify and prosecute such cases (pp. 21-22)
Ms Sophie Mirabella's appointment to the Fair Work Commission and her suitability for the role as a Commissioner (pp. 24-33)
Changes to sham contracting penalties (pp. 34-35)
Recommendations made by the Migrant Workers' Taskforce and how the government is implementing them (pp. 35-36)
Gig-economy workers' pay compared to minimum wage and casual worker award rates (pp. 38-40)
Work being done by the Attorney-General's Department to support the government's response to the Respect@Work: National Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in Australian Workplaces report (Respect@Work report) (pp. 41‑42)
The Fair Work Commission's recent unfair dismissal ruling in relation to Deliveroo (pp. 43-44 & 46-47)
Outcomes from the workplace health and safety ministers' meeting that occurred on 20 May 2021 (pp. 45-46)
Gig-economy workers and their coverage by existing work health and safety laws (pp. 49-51)
Increasing the penalties for category 1 work health and safety offences that deal with serious injury, both physical and psychological (pp. 50-51)
The government's position on wage rises and its submission to the Fair Work Commission's independent annual wage review (pp. 52-57)
The importance of productivity increases for future wage growth (pp. 58-59)
Sexual harassment in the workplace and the response to the Respect@Work report (pp. 60-61)
Initiatives underway to deal with the issue of dust related disease (p. 62)
Legislation for the criminalisation of wage theft (pp. 63-67)
Resourcing provided to the Fair Work Ombudsman as part of the 2021 budget (pp. 69-70)
Comparisons between the amount of underpayments received by the
Fair Work Ombudsman and Price Waterhouse Coopers's analysis on wage theft in Australia conducted in November 2019 (pp. 71-75)
Digital printing company Ovato and their Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) claim (pp. 79-86)
Estimated FEG payout figures for 2021-22 (p. 87)
Aged care workers on part-time contracts looking for more hours (pp. 88-90)
Issues raised by the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, particularly surrounding the use of independent contractors in part-time work (pp. 90-91 & 92-94)
An independent review of the Coal Mining (Long Service Leave Funding) Corporation recently announced by the Attorney-General (p. 92)
Findings of the Norton Rose review into the FEG (pp. 95-96)
Recommendations that were made in respect of labour hire from the National Agriculture Workforce Strategy (p. 97)
Employees in the same job receiving varying amounts of pay due to the increased use of labour hire firms (pp. 97-99)
Aftermath of the WorkPac v Rossato case heard in the High Court (pp. 99‑100)
Work on a national labour hire register recommended in a report from the Migrant Workers' Taskforce (pp. 101-102)
The ability for gig-economy workers, who are considered contract workers, to negotiate their employment contract (pp. 102-105)
The outcome for each recommendation of the Review of the model Work Health and Safety laws: Final report (Boland report), whether they were accepted, partially accepted or rejected by the government (pp. 106-111)
Recommendation 23b of the Boland report supporting the legislation of industrial manslaughter laws (pp. 111-114).
Attorney-General's portfolio, Industrial Relations matters – Wednesday, 2 June 2021
Safe Work Australia
2.4
Ms Michelle Baxter, Chief Executive Officer of Safe Work Australia (SWA), did not make an opening statement.
2.5
Topics discussed for SWA included:
Timeline for the implementation of recommendations and funding allocated to support those implementations (pp. 4-5)
Recommendation 23b that the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 be amended to provide for a new offence of industrial manslaughter
(pp. 6-8)
National fatality rates for industrial deaths (p. 9)
Government response to the Respect@Work report (pp. 10-13)
Work done by SWA providing guidance material regarding sexual harassment in the workplace (pp. 14-15)
Conduct of the National Dust Disease Taskforce and actions taken by SWA to prevent employees contracting respiratory diseases, such as silicosis, at work (pp. 15-17)
Gig-economy platforms in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (p. 18).
Coal Mining Industry (Long Service Leave Funding) Corporation
2.6
Ms Darlene Perks, Chief Executive Officer of the Coal Mining Industry
(Long Service Leave Funding) Corporation (Coal LSL), did not make an opening statement.
2.7
Topics discussed for the Coal LSL included:
Differing long service leave accrual rates for permanent and casual black coal miners (pp. 19-22 & 24)
Communications to employees making them aware they are able to alter their contributions to the Coal LSL scheme (pp. 23-24)
The Coal LSL independent review announced on 1 June 2021 (pp. 25-29).
Comcare
2.8
Ms Susan Weston PSM, Chief Executive Officer of Comcare, did not make an opening statement.
2.9
Topics discussed for Comcare included:
Comcare's internal Statutory Oversight team responding to concerns or complaints about contracted services provided by Comcare (pp. 29-30)
The process for reporting complaints to the Statutory Oversight team and how they are managed (pp. 30-31)
The complaint process for independent medical examinations (IMEs) and concerns about the increased frequency of complaints regarding IMEs (pp. 31-33)
Details of surveillance activities undertaken by Comcare (pp. 34-35 & 38-40)
Recent financial performance of Comcare (pp. 36-37)
Ongoing investigations into the death of an Iraqi national who took his own life at Sydney's Villawood immigration centre on 4 March 2021 (pp. 41-43)
Ongoing investigations into Mr Gerard Boyce, Fair Work Commissioner (pp. 42-44)
Investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct by Members of Parliament or staffers following the rape allegations made by Ms Brittany Higgins (pp. 44-45).
Australian Building and Construction Commission
2.10
Mr Stephen McBurney, Commissioner of the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC), tabled his opening statement which addressed two sanctions imposed by the Minister for Industrial Relations after having been referred to by the ABCC.
2.11
Topics discussed for the ABCC included:
Steps the ABCC has taken to assist unpaid subcontractors, specifically those working for the Pindan Group and Grocon (pp. 46-48)
Conduct of security-of-payment cases (pp. 49-50)
Queensland government's procurement policy and its implications for civil contractors (pp. 50-52)
Compliance activity to monitor and promote appropriate standards of conduct in the building industry and to apply, assess, monitor, and enforce designated building laws (pp. 53-55)
Commissioner McBurney's work related trip to Queensland in July 2020 (p. 55)
Allocation of staff within the ABCC (pp. 56-58).
Registered Organisations Commission
2.12
Mr Mark Bielecki, Commissioner of the Registered Organisations Commission (ROC), did not make an opening statement.
2.13
The ROC's appearance at estimates was very brief, only answering a few questions. The questions they did answer related primarily to their ongoing investigations into the Australian Workers' Union for incorrect reporting of membership numbers. This investigation had been temporarily suspended due to COVID‑19 and recommenced 17 February 2021 (pp. 58-60).
Fair Work Commission
2.14
Mr Murray Furlong, Acting General Manager, Fair Work Commission (FWC), did not make an opening statement.
2.15
Topics discussed for the FWC included:
The FWC's work health and safety response to the alleged lighting of firecrackers on its premises by Deputy President, Mr Gerard Boyce (pp. 61‑62 & 66-67)
Actions taken by the FWC following the conclusion of an inquiry into inappropriate figurines on display in the office of Mr Boyce (pp. 62-63)
Decisions made by Mr Boyce that have subsequently been overturned (pp. 64‑65)
FWC's casual terms award review due to be completed in September 2021 (pp. 68-69 & 83)
Explanation of the better-off-overall-test (BOOT) and examples of when the BOOT has been applied (pp. 69-70)
The complex nature of the Fair Work Act 2009 (p. 71)
Professional standards displayed by Mr Boyce and judgements he has made in his capacity as a Commissioner (pp. 72-76)
The upcoming minimum wage increase (pp. 76-79)
The appointment of Ms Sophie Mirabella as a Commissioner (pp. 79-80)
Possible causes of the spike in unfair dismissal and general protection applications (p. 82).
Fair Work Ombudsman
2.16
Ms Sandra Parker PSM, Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO), did not make an opening statement.
2.17
Topics discussed for the FWO included:
Actions available to the FWO if vulnerable workers consent to lower pay rates, possibly being exploited (pp. 84-86)
Food delivery companies who classify their workers as independent contractors and the avenues of appeal available to those workers (pp. 86‑88)
Information, tools and resources created by the FWO to help casual employees and employers understand the new changes for casuals to industrial relations law (pp. 88-90)
Strategies developed to assist small businesses adjust to the new industrial relations laws and the complexities of the Fair Work Act 2009 (pp. 90‑92)
The FWO's capacity to recover wages as a result of compliance disputes (pp. 93-94)
The FWO's reliance on whistle blowers to initiate an investigation (pp. 94‑96)
Consequences of, and investigations that have occurred following, the Harvest Trail Inquiry Report (pp. 98-100)
The Northern Territory Working Women's Centre and their unsuccessful bid to secure funding under the FWO Community Engagement Grants Program (pp. 100-102)
Instances of underpayments and wage theft from franchisees (pp. 103-105).
Education, Skills and Employment Portfolio – Thursday,
3 June 2021
Department of Education, Skills and Employment
2.18
Neither Senator the Hon Linda Reynolds, Minister representing the Minister for Education, nor Dr Michele Bruniges AM, Secretary of the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE), made an opening statement.
Early Childhood and Child Care
2.19
Topics discussed for DESE – Early Childhood and Child Care included:
Actions taken by the Minister for Education and Youth to assist families in Melbourne who used child care during the recent COVID-19 enforced lockdowns (pp. 4-5)
The government's new childcare policy announced on 2 May 2021, specifically the subsidies provided to families with multiple children in child care (pp. 5-8 & 15-16)
Recently announced changes to the child care subsidy and child care fees due to be implemented in July 2022 (pp. 9-10 & 16-18)
The department's considerations prior to announcing the funding of 15 hours per child per week for preschools (pp. 11-12)
Workforce strategies for early childhood and child care, specifically diversification (pp. 11-13)
The quality of care provided by for-profit child care centres compared to not‑for‑profit centres (pp. 13-14)
The preschool funding agreement provided by the government over the next four years and allocation of funding for isolated children (pp. 14-15)
Child care affordability and out-of-pocket costs for families (pp. 18‑20, 22‑23 & 28-29)
Data for out of school hours care and the disruptions caused by COVID-19 (pp. 20-22)
Forward projections for the cost of child care (pp. 24-25).
School and Youth
2.20
Topics discussed for DESE – Schools and Youth included:
The Respect Matters program, including the Good Society website (pp. 29‑36 & 40-49):
The length of time taken to develop the program
Contract details and overall costs
Correspondence to and from the Minister's office regarding the program and the two consent videos briefly displayed on the website
Qualifications and experience of members or organisations represented on the Resource Review Group, a reference panel established to help bring expertise to the process
Content on the Good Society website, specifically the two videos focusing on consent that have been removed
The approval process for the two videos removed from the Good Society website
Review of content on the website
Details of the contract with Liquid Interactive, who produced the two videos
School funding transparency and departmental obligations to disclose it under the Australian Education Act 2013 (pp. 36-38)
Budget measure guaranteeing universal access to preschool (pp. 38-39)
Details of the money allocated and spent on an emerging priorities fund (pp. 49-53 & 55)
Student access to digital learning materials at home during COVID-19 lockdowns (pp. 53-54)
The Minister for Youth's engagement with youth organisations and the policy framework for the Youth Taskforce (pp. 56-58).
Higher Education, Research and International
2.21
Topics discussed for DESE – Higher Education, Research and International included:
Student debt and the Higher Education Loan Program (pp. 59-63)
Student contributions to their higher education courses (pp. 62-64)
Allocations for a one-off payment for short courses and higher education (pp. 65-67)
Privacy concerns for research students at the University of Sydney who are required to disclose their personal relationships (pp. 67-68)
Evidence the Job-ready Graduates higher education reform package has been successful in incentivising STEM subjects (p. 68)
The government's strategies to decrease job losses at Australian universities (p. 69)
A breakdown of operating surpluses for several Australian universities (p. 70)
Market research from DESE assessing student engagement and helping inform policy, such as the Job-ready Graduates higher education reform package (pp. 72-75)
Government funding for universities following the implementation of the Job-ready Graduates higher education reform package (pp.76-79).
Skills and Training
2.22
Topics discussed for DESE – Skills and Training included:
Renegotiation of the National Agreement for Skills and Workforce Development (NASWD) (pp. 79-81)
Student fees as a consequence of the NASWD negotiations (pp. 82-83)
Unused funding from South Australia's allocation of the Commonwealth Scholarships Program for Young Australians being redirected to the national program (pp. 84-86)
The Australian Apprenticeships Incentives Program (pp. 86-87)
Number of apprenticeships forecast as a result of the Boosting Apprenticeship Commencement (BAC) wage subsidy (pp. 88-99)
The modelling underlying the BAC wage subsidy (pp. 99-102).
Employment
2.23
Topics discussed for DESE – Employment included:
Mutual obligation requirements for job seekers and payment suspensions (pp. 103-104)
The Employer Reporting Hotline – staffing, the nature of reports, and actions taken by DESE (pp. 103-106)
Ensuring job service providers are meeting expected standards when designing an employment plan (pp. 107-108 & 118-119)
JobSeeker payment suspensions (pp. 108-109)
The Online Employment Services Trial being conducted in the Mid North Coast of New South Wales and South Adelaide (pp. 111-112)
Details of the new employment services model for 2022-23 and 2023-24, and the Digital Services Contact Centre (pp. 112-116).
Corporate and Enabling Services
2.24
Topics discussed for DESE – Corporate and Enabling Services included:
Overall effectiveness of the 1800 CAREER phone service for school leavers (pp. 120-121)
Possible Ministerial conflicts of interest (pp. 121-124)
Use of labour hire contracts within DESE (pp. 125-127).
Education, Skills and Employment Portfolio – Friday,
4 June 2021
Australian Research Council
2.25
Professor Sue Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Research Council (ARC), did not make an opening statement.
2.26
Topics discussed for the ARC included:
Circumstances of 57 individual grants where ARC recovered money over the period 2016-2020 (pp. 5-6)
The use of and appropriateness of the term 'sensitive' when accessing grant applications (pp. 6-7)
Profiles kept by the ARC on academics who apply for grants – how the information is collected and used (pp. 8‑9 & 12-16)
Delays for Ministerial approval after grants were recommended by the ARC (pp. 9-10)
The ARC's involvement in developing the University Research Commercialisation Scheme announced in the 2020-21 Budget (pp. 10-11)
Funding for 'replication research' and the ARC's definition of 'new knowledge' as a criteria for funding approval (p. 11)
The potential reputational harm to academics investigated due to 'sensitivity' concerns (pp. 15-17)
ARC's contribution to the Foreign Interference Taskforce (pp. 18-20)
How funding received in the 2021-22 Budget will be allocated and how allocations are determined (pp. 21-23).
Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency
2.27
Emeritus Professor Peter Coaldrake, Chief Commissioner of the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), did not make an opening statement.
2.28
Topics discussed for TEQSA included:
Results from the 2020 APS staff census indicating 20 per cent of staff at TEQSA said they experienced discrimination in their workplace (pp. 24-25)
Effective academic oversight and the increase of non-academics filling oversight roles at universities (p. 26)
Financial impacts for higher education providers following recent reforms to the sector (pp. 27-28)
An annual levy due to be phased in and its consequences on small service providers (pp. 30-31).
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
2.29
Mr David de Carvalho, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), used his opening statement to discuss the recent formal review of the Australian Curriculum, the first
since 2014.
2.30
Mr de Carvalho outlined the conduct of the review which included consultation with various stakeholders, such as school principals, teachers, and curriculum experts. Mr de Carvalho noted this was the first review involving public consultation on the full set of curriculum materials.
2.31
Mr de Carvalho emphasised that ACARA considers the Australian Curriculum to be a living document and welcomes feedback from a wide range of sources.
2.32
Topics discussed for ACARA included:
A drop in LANTITE scores testing the literacy and numeracy skills of Australian teachers (pp. 32-33)
Metrics used by ACARA to ascertain the effectiveness of the Australian Curriculum (pp. 33-34)
Consideration of ANZAC day in the recent curriculum review (pp. 35-36)
Consent education in the recent curriculum review and ACARA's consultation with Chanel Contos (pp. 36-38)
Details about the delivery of the recent NAPLAN test in 2021 (pp. 38-40)
NAPLAN transitioning to digital testing as opposed to handwritten testing (p. 40)
Concerns about NAPLAN testing limiting student potential (pp. 41-43)
The possibility of issues highlighted in the recent Respect@Work Report being addressed in the Australian Curriculum (p. 43).
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership
2.33
Mr Mark Grant, Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), did not make an opening statement.
2.34
Topics discussed for AITSL included:
Work priorities for AITSL for the remainder of the year (p. 44)
Increased instances of abuse received by teachers and schools staff in their workplace and strategies developed by AITSL to combat this (pp. 44‑45)
Workforce strategy for teachers and the challenge of attracting and retaining teaching staff (pp. 46-47)
Pay equity for teachers and a review into teacher education (pp. 49-53).
National Skills Commission
2.35
Mr Adam Boyton, the National Skills Commissioner, did not make an opening statement.
2.36
Topics discussed for the National Skills Commission (NSC):
Funding provided to the NSC (pp. 54-55)
National skills shortages and the continuing development of a skills priority list (pp. 56‑59 )
Observations from a recent vocational education and training (VET) average price benchmark database published on the NSC website in March (p. 57).
National Centre for Vocational Education Research
2.37
Mr Simon Walker, Managing Director of the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), did not make an opening statement.
2.38
Topics discussed for NCVER included:
Data provided by NCVER to states and territories regarding total VET activity (p. 60)
A 10-day embargo period placed on data produced by NCVER for the purpose of ministerial briefings before the information is released to the public (pp. 60-61)
Previous answers to questions on notice provided to the committee (pp. 61‑62)
Data showing the impact of COVID-19 on apprenticeships and traineeships (pp. 62-63).
Australian Skills Quality Authority
2.39
Ms Saxon Rice, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA), did not make an opening statement.
2.40
Topics discussed for ASQA included:
Recent staffing changes and appointments, particularly in senior leadership positions (pp. 64-67)
The ASQA Rapid Review Final Report (ASQA rapid review) making
24 recommendations to reform ASQA's regulatory approach, culture, and governance and the organisational changes that followed (pp. 66-76)
Qualifications and experience of new staff at ASQA and the taskforce created to implement the recommendations of the ASQA rapid review (pp. 70-76)
ASQA's consultation with the government regarding the increased funding for JobTrainer (pp. 76-78).
Senator the Hon James McGrath
Chair