Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee

Portfolio Committee

View on parliament.qld.gov.au

Bills Reviewed (4)

Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024Recommended passagePASSED with amendment

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 8, 57th Parliament-Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024, government response2024-09-11

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 8, 57th Parliament-Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 20242024-08-02

Committee findings

The Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee examined the bill over seven weeks, receiving 23 submissions and holding a public briefing and hearing. The committee unanimously recommended the bill be passed. It also recommended an amendment to remove the Blue Card requirement for adult household members of kinship carers, finding that the bill as introduced would simply shift existing barriers from kinship carers to their household members. The Queensland Government accepted both recommendations and moved amendments during consideration in detail.

Key findings
  • There was strong support from submitters for removing the Blue Card requirement for kinship carers, particularly given the significant barriers it poses for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
  • The committee found that the Blue Card system is not suitable for kinship care and that requiring adult household members to hold a Blue Card would undermine the bill's intent by shifting barriers rather than removing them.
  • The committee supported the new risk-based decision-making framework for Blue Card assessments, finding it a progressive step that will better recognise rehabilitation and account for systemic disadvantage and intergenerational trauma.
  • Stakeholders raised concerns about the 'reasonable person test' potentially leading to overly cautious decision-making, but the committee was satisfied that risk assessment guidelines and advisory committees provide sufficient safeguards.
  • The committee supported expanding the scope of regulated employment and businesses, including removing the Blue Card exemption for lawyers, finding the measures proportionate to the risks involved.
Recommendations
  • The committee recommends the Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 be passed.
  • The committee recommends that the Bill be amended to remove the requirement that adult household members of kinship carers hold a Blue Card.
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Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024Recommended passagePASSED with amendment

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 7, 57th Parliament- Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024, government response2024-09-06

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 7, 57th Parliament-Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 20242024-06-07

Committee findings

The Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee examined the bill over approximately seven weeks, receiving submissions from 17 stakeholders including unions, employer groups, legal bodies, and gig economy platforms. The committee recommended the bill be passed, while also recommending further consultation on proposed changes to appeal pathways for Queensland Industrial Relations Commission full bench decisions. The government accepted the passage recommendation and, in response to stakeholder concerns from the Queensland Law Society and Queensland Council of Unions, agreed to remove the QIRC appeal pathway clauses from the bill for further consultation.

Key findings
  • The bill would allow gig economy workers to be brought into the workers' compensation scheme if the Fair Work Commission makes minimum standards orders for regulated workers, following a recommendation from the 2018 scheme review.
  • Stakeholders broadly supported extending workers' compensation coverage to gig workers, noting they are vulnerable to workplace injuries and unlikely to hold voluntary personal injury insurance.
  • The Queensland Law Society and Queensland Council of Unions raised concerns about proposed changes to QIRC appeal pathways, leading the government to agree to remove those clauses.
  • Amendments to the Labour Hire Licensing Act to allow electronic service of documents were generally supported, though the Local Government Association of Queensland flagged internet access issues in regional and rural areas.
  • The committee received 17 submissions from organisations including DoorDash, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, Master Builders Queensland, and the United Firefighters' Union Queensland.
Recommendations
  • The committee recommends the Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024 be passed.
  • The committee recommends further consultation be undertaken with stakeholders on proposed amendments to the Industrial Relations Act 2016 relating specifically to the appeal pathways for full bench decisions of the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission.
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Public Health and Other Legislation (Extension of Expiring Provisions) Amendment Bill 2020Recommended passagePASSED

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 6, 57th Parliament-Education (General Provisions) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2024, government response2024-07-19

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 6, 57th Parliament-Education (General Provisions) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 20242024-04-19

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 5, 57th Parliament-Education (General Provisions) (Extension of Primary Schools in Remote Areas) Amendment Bill 20232024-04-19

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 3, 57th Parliament-Education (General Provisions) (Helping Families with School Costs) Amendment Bill 20232024-04-11

Committee findings

The Health and Environment Committee examined the bill over approximately two months, receiving 124 written submissions and holding a public hearing with 16 witnesses. The committee recommended the bill be passed, noting strong support from health sector organisations for extending the Chief Health Officer's emergency powers to respond to COVID-19 until September 2021. However, a significant number of written submissions opposed the bill, raising concerns about the extent of emergency powers, impacts on civil liberties, government transparency, hotel quarantine conditions, and the broader social and economic effects of public health restrictions.

Key findings
  • Health sector organisations including AMA Queensland, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists, and the Queensland Nurses and Midwives' Union supported extending emergency powers to maintain Queensland's effective COVID-19 response.
  • A majority of written submissions (approximately 87 per cent) opposed the bill, raising concerns about the proportionality of emergency powers, impacts on democratic freedoms, and the lack of clear criteria for when powers would no longer be needed.
  • The Queensland Human Rights Commissioner and Mental Health Commissioner expressed reservations about government transparency and the need for greater access to the data and health advice underpinning public health directions.
  • Stakeholders raised significant concerns about hotel quarantine conditions, including access to fresh air, mental health support, and the financial burden on individuals required to pay their own quarantine costs.
  • The committee examined the bill's compatibility with the Human Rights Act 2019, finding that limitations on rights including freedom of movement, liberty and security, and peaceful assembly were justified by the purpose of protecting public health.
Recommendations
  • The committee recommends the Public Health and Other Legislation (Extension of Expiring Provisions) Amendment Bill 2020 be passed.
Dissenting views: Stephen Andrew MP (Member for Mirani) filed a dissenting report arguing that emergency powers were disproportionate given Queensland's low case numbers, that the government lacked transparency about the health advice underpinning its decisions, and that the committee's report overstated stakeholder support for the bill. He raised concerns about the concentration of power in unelected public health officials, the undermining of fundamental legal principles including due process and habeas corpus, and the risk of emergency powers becoming normalised and permanent.
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Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023Recommended passagePASSED with amendment

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 2, 57th Parliament-Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, government response2024-03-20

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 2, 57th Parliament-Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 20232024-02-23

Committee findings

The Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee examined the Bill over approximately three months, receiving written submissions from a range of stakeholders and holding a public hearing on 30 January 2024. The committee recommended the Bill be passed, finding it would achieve its policy objectives of strengthening health and safety representative roles and clarifying workplace representation arrangements. The committee made four additional recommendations focused on implementation support, including guidance materials for health and safety representatives, industry-specific training, and an awareness campaign. LNP members filed a Statement of Reservation dissenting from the committee's recommendation, arguing the Bill restricted workers' choice of representation.

Key findings
  • The committee was satisfied the Bill would achieve its policy objectives of implementing recommendations from the 2022 WHS Act Review and the 2018 Boland Review.
  • Employer groups including the Australian Meat Industry Council and Master Builders Queensland raised concerns about expanded union access to workplaces and information-sharing with health and safety representatives.
  • The committee identified that health and safety representatives would need additional training and guidance to effectively utilise the new powers proposed in the Bill, particularly in high-risk industries such as health, construction, transport and manufacturing.
  • The Bill's restrictions on which entities may represent workers on WHS matters raised human rights considerations regarding freedom of association, which the committee found were justified and proportionate.
  • The government accepted all five of the committee's recommendations in its formal response tabled on 20 March 2024.
Recommendations
  • The committee recommends that the Work Health and Safety and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 be passed.
  • The committee recommends that the Office of Industrial Relations develop guidance and resource materials, in consultation with a range of industries, to train and support health and safety representatives in utilising the new powers proposed in the Bill to implement new operational obligations being introduced.
  • The committee recommends that the Office of Industrial Relations include consideration of how industry-specific knowledge is incorporated into HSR training as part of its review into HSR training, particularly in high-risk industries such as health, construction, transport and manufacturing, to ensure any sector-specific aspects of health and safety are covered.
  • The Office of Industrial Relations should consult with registered employer and employee organisations as part of its review into HSR training.
  • The committee recommends that, if the Bill is passed, the OIR consider undertaking an awareness campaign so relevant organisations and workers are fully informed about the changes to who can lawfully represent workers under the new definitions contained within the Bill.
Dissenting views: LNP members James Lister MP (Deputy Chair, Member for Southern Downs) and Brent Mickelberg MP (Member for Buderim) filed a Statement of Reservation dissenting from the committee's recommendation. They argued the Bill should not be passed, contending it removed workers' right to choose who represents them on WHS matters by establishing a monopoly for registered trade unions. The LNP members argued that non-registered worker organisations (referred to as 'Red Unions') should be permitted to register and represent workers, and that the Bill's provisions primarily benefited unions with political ties to the then-governing Labor Party rather than improving outcomes for workers.
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Other Reports (7)

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No.11, 57th Parliament-Subordinate legislation tabled between 14 February 2024 and 3 September 2024

Subordinate Legislation2024-09-18

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 10, 57th Parliament-Annual Report 2023-24

Other2024-08-29

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 9, 57th Parliament-2024-25 Budget Estimates-Volume of Additional Information

Other2024-08-09

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 9, 57th Parliament-2024-25 Budget Estimates

Other2024-08-09

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 1, 57th Parliament-The delivery of VET in regional, rural and remote Queensland, government response

Other2024-05-22

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 4, 57th Parliament-Subordinate legislation tabled between 15 November 2023 and 13 February 2024

Subordinate Legislation2024-04-12

Education, Employment, Training and Skills Committee: Report No. 1, 57th Parliament-The delivery of VET in regional, rural and remote Queensland

Other2024-02-21