Page 4411 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 8 December 1993
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Mr De Domenico: Why is there a stop-work meeting this Friday?
MR LAMONT: Because - - -
Mr De Domenico: Why? Tell us. You are the ex-secretary of the TWU. You should know.
MR LAMONT: Mr De Domenico, if you would stop yapping for a moment, I will. You will not understand it, but I will tell you. You simply will not understand it; nevertheless, I will tell you. In terms of the cooperative approach to micro-economic reform, a scheme of arrangements has been put into place. From time to time there will be disputes over that process, as there was, let us say, in the case of the Priorities Review Board report when there were disputes over the process and so forth. We negotiated the resolution to that with a reasonable Chief Minister, as he then was, who, as I have said in this house before, has spoken in glowing terms about the appropriateness of those processes. How can I, therefore, undermine his credibility and understanding of industrial relations when on that occasion he was so right?
Madam Speaker, the cooperative approach to industrial relations that we are adopting and hoping to implement also allows for differences between the parties. The difference between us is that we are prepared to allow those differences to run their course. I understand that this week, following a range of negotiations, the Transport Workers Union will be putting a scheme of arrangements to their members for endorsement. Mr De Domenico, this may surprise you, but that is the way that the Transport Workers Union works. It has a negotiation group which discusses things with the employer, and it goes back to the membership and gets their imprimatur. That may be very strange for you. I know that you do not understand the way these processes work - that is pretty obvious - but this is part of the relationship which you must develop to allow micro-economic reform to work. Madam Speaker, there will be differences - differences will arise, without question - but there are processes in place to resolve those.
Mr De Domenico: Like pulling the plug on the CCG.
MR LAMONT: I put it to you this way: Whether it is the Transport Workers Union, the CFMEU, the Metal Workers Union or any of the others, they are prepared to have differences with the Government, they are prepared to have differences about process, they are prepared to continue the negotiations, and they are prepared to go through the industrial relations process. Unlike you and your mates the doctors, these people are prepared to go through with a properly structured process. What Mr De Domenico fails to understand is that it is that relationship that will deliver the types of micro-economic reform that Mr De Domenico knows the rhetoric for but has no chance in hell of ever being able to achieve himself. He understands that he will be in opposition perennially; so he just loves to bleat.
What Mr De Domenico misunderstands is the difference between the concepts of micro-economic reform that are being delivered on this side of the house and the rhetoric behind his own fairly dry Liberalist philosophy. Differences do arise between a Labor government, whether it is this one or any other, and the trade unions. It is a fact. Unions and Labor governments are prepared to have those
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