❓ Mr Zempilas asks the Premier about his support for an ACTU campaign to shut down the Pilbara mining sector for six months due to heat, questioning if this aligns with the Premier's view on productivity and the industry's importance. The Premier responds by highlighting the importance of worker safety, existing company efforts, and WorkSafe's role in ensuring compliance during high temperatures.
AnsweredQoN 98Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
Pilbara—Union activity
98. Mr Basil Zempilas to
the Premier:
Just before my
question, with your indulgence, Mr Speaker, and I thank you, I would like to
echo the sentiments of the Premier, who stood earlier in the chamber in his
brief ministerial statement and honoured the great Dennis Cometti, who, as we
all know, we lost just a short time ago. With your indulgence, Mr Speaker, I
thank you for the opportunity to say that I was very fortunate to know and work
alongside Dennis for 35 years. It was the greatest pleasure of my broadcasting
career. It was a friendship that endured. I mentioned Dennis in my inaugural
speech and I am very pleased that I did. I had the very good fortune of having
Dennis as a hero, and then as a colleague. In time, he became a mentor and
ultimately our relationship developed into one of friendship—and how
lucky I was.
Over the last week
or so and I have been asked, and have had many opportunities to express, "What
was it about Dennis Cometti? What was the genius of Dennis Cometti as a
broadcaster and as a football commentator?" He was a natural behind the
microphone. He had that beautiful voice, that incredible turn of phrase. His
timing was as good as anybody's and he understood the moment better than
anyone. But as well as that, he also had the incredible gift of work ethic, and
he worked as hard as anyone I have ever seen in that space. It was a great
lesson for young broadcasters. Those natural talents and that incredible work
ethic combined to result in the very best of his kind and of his generation—the
best AFL broadcaster we have ever known. That is not me saying it; that is
someone like Bruce McAvaney, who has said it many times. Ultimately, because he
was the best, every Western Australian celebrated his success. He was revered
in South Australia, Victoria and at home, and because of his great success, we
all shared in it. He was our Dennis Cometti. He was Western Australia's Dennis
Cometti, and that is why he was so loved. Ultimately, at a time like this, we
acknowledge, thank and extend our profound condolences to his wife, Velia, his
daughter, Ricki, and his son, Mark, who ultimately shared their dad and husband
with all of us. He was the best in the business. He will be missed. I thank
you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to extend our condolences and say, vale, the
great Dennis Cometti.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr Basil Zempilas: With that, if I may, I have two
questions.
I refer to the Premier's previous answer about union
activity in the Pilbara, where the Premier stated that the focus of the
unions was on driving productivity.
(1) At a time of global uncertainty, does the
Premier support the Australian Council of Trade Unions' campaign to shut down
the Pilbara mining sector for six months of the year when it is hot?
(2) Is this the type of productivity measure the
Premier had in mind for an industry, as the Treasurer noted today, that keeps
our state running?
98. Mr Basil Zempilas to
the Premier:
Just before my
question, with your indulgence, Mr Speaker, and I thank you, I would like to
echo the sentiments of the Premier, who stood earlier in the chamber in his
brief ministerial statement and honoured the great Dennis Cometti, who, as we
all know, we lost just a short time ago. With your indulgence, Mr Speaker, I
thank you for the opportunity to say that I was very fortunate to know and work
alongside Dennis for 35 years. It was the greatest pleasure of my broadcasting
career. It was a friendship that endured. I mentioned Dennis in my inaugural
speech and I am very pleased that I did. I had the very good fortune of having
Dennis as a hero, and then as a colleague. In time, he became a mentor and
ultimately our relationship developed into one of friendship—and how
lucky I was.
Over the last week
or so and I have been asked, and have had many opportunities to express, "What
was it about Dennis Cometti? What was the genius of Dennis Cometti as a
broadcaster and as a football commentator?" He was a natural behind the
microphone. He had that beautiful voice, that incredible turn of phrase. His
timing was as good as anybody's and he understood the moment better than
anyone. But as well as that, he also had the incredible gift of work ethic, and
he worked as hard as anyone I have ever seen in that space. It was a great
lesson for young broadcasters. Those natural talents and that incredible work
ethic combined to result in the very best of his kind and of his generation—the
best AFL broadcaster we have ever known. That is not me saying it; that is
someone like Bruce McAvaney, who has said it many times. Ultimately, because he
was the best, every Western Australian celebrated his success. He was revered
in South Australia, Victoria and at home, and because of his great success, we
all shared in it. He was our Dennis Cometti. He was Western Australia's Dennis
Cometti, and that is why he was so loved. Ultimately, at a time like this, we
acknowledge, thank and extend our profound condolences to his wife, Velia, his
daughter, Ricki, and his son, Mark, who ultimately shared their dad and husband
with all of us. He was the best in the business. He will be missed. I thank
you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to extend our condolences and say, vale, the
great Dennis Cometti.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr Basil Zempilas: With that, if I may, I have two
questions.
I refer to the Premier's previous answer about union
activity in the Pilbara, where the Premier stated that the focus of the
unions was on driving productivity.
(1) At a time of global uncertainty, does the
Premier support the Australian Council of Trade Unions' campaign to shut down
the Pilbara mining sector for six months of the year when it is hot?
(2) Is this the type of productivity measure the
Premier had in mind for an industry, as the Treasurer noted today, that keeps
our state running?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I thank the member for the
question. The mining industry obviously plays a vital role in our national
economy. It employs thousands of Western Australians. I have been advised that
the ACTU campaign is for national safety regulations. All mining companies have
a responsibility to keep their workers safe, and that includes during times of
high temperatures. I was in Karratha last week, talking to the workers. They
all spoke about the importance of hydration in the workplace when the heat goes
up and all talked about the work that they are doing with their employer around
making sure that they keep themselves safe during elevated temperatures.
WorkSafe conducts hundreds of mine site visits across WA annually to oversee
the compliance and enforcement activities in relation to our mining industry.
We want to keep our workers safe. We know that Western Australian workers are
tougher than most and some of them work in some very trying conditions, but we
need to make sure they stay safe, and that is why they work with their
employers, the mining companies, to ensure that when they are exposed to high
temperatures, they take the necessary precautions.
question. The mining industry obviously plays a vital role in our national
economy. It employs thousands of Western Australians. I have been advised that
the ACTU campaign is for national safety regulations. All mining companies have
a responsibility to keep their workers safe, and that includes during times of
high temperatures. I was in Karratha last week, talking to the workers. They
all spoke about the importance of hydration in the workplace when the heat goes
up and all talked about the work that they are doing with their employer around
making sure that they keep themselves safe during elevated temperatures.
WorkSafe conducts hundreds of mine site visits across WA annually to oversee
the compliance and enforcement activities in relation to our mining industry.
We want to keep our workers safe. We know that Western Australian workers are
tougher than most and some of them work in some very trying conditions, but we
need to make sure they stay safe, and that is why they work with their
employers, the mining companies, to ensure that when they are exposed to high
temperatures, they take the necessary precautions.
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