Protecting Our Coal Miners

During this session with the Fair Work Commission, I asked Mr Furlong if he agreed that you cannot use an enterprise agreement to strip away rights provided by the Fair Work Act and the National Employment Standards. He agreed. During our exchange, I highlighted several concerns: I reminded Mr. Furlong that the High Court in Rossato was clear — contract terms must be given effect unless they are contrary to statute. You can’t take away annual leave or award entitlements if the law says otherwise. When I asked how losing annual leave and getting lower pay could possibly make a worker "better off," the Commission hid behind "abstract" assessments. There is nothing abstract about a coal miner losing their leave and being underpaid compared to the Black Coal Award. The Commission tried to tell me we’ve "traversed" this ground before. My response was simple: I will keep traversing it until these workers get what's owed to them in full compliance with the law. — Senate Estimates | February 2026 Transcript: https://www.malcolmrobertsqld.com.au/protecting-our-coal-miners/