E&OE TRANSCRIPT
DOORSTOP INTERVIEW
SYDNEY
WEDNESDAY, 10 MARCH 2021

SUBJECT: Scott Morrison’s broken promise on superannuation.

MARK MOREY, UNIONS NSW SECRETARY: We're here to talk today about the fact that the Prime Minister is earning 15.4% superannuation. He earns more superannuation in two years than a woman will finish her career with, and we think this is just outrageous that this Federal Government is seeking to cut increased superannuation for working people. It was introduced to ensure that people didn't retire into poverty. This Government has made a decision to shift the economic responsibility of this downturn on to workers and cutting the super guarantee will in fact assign workers to poverty in the future. I have with me Stephen Jones, Shadow Minister of Superannuation and Catherine Bolger who's the President AIST who is to comment today. Catherine?

CATHERINE BOLGER, PRESIDENT AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SUPERANNUATION TRUSTEES: Thank you Mark. As we've heard, the super guarantees due to increase from 9.5 to ten percent on the first of July this year and to twelve percent by 2025. However, the Government is signalling that it's going to cancel your super increases. If the government abandons its election promise and cancels the SG increases, it will have a big impact on workers. But the Government has an opportunity now to stick by its election promises. If the Government sticks by its election promises, for a typical worker, a typical 30-year-old truck driver, they would be paid an extra $8.25 a week in super but when they retire they would get an extra $124,000 in super.  If the Government sticks by its promises and does increase the super, a typical 30-year-old registered nurse would earn an extra $8.09 a week in super, but that would mean an extra $121,000 for that registered nurse on retirement. I want to ask you to think for a moment about the impact on women. Here we are in the week of international women's day. Women retire with approximately half of the super that men retire on, half of the super balanced of men. It's estimated that 40% of older single women retire in poverty. The fastest growing cohort of homeless people is older women. It's a bleak picture for women in retirement. To cancel super increases will have a massive impact on women. It will absolutely increase poverty and homelessness for women. The Government has the opportunity to fix this now. So we are calling on the Federal Government to do the right thing, which is good policy, and commit to the legislated super guarantee increases. Thank you.

STEPHEN JONES, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Thanks, Catherine, thanks Mark. Well, it's great to be here in Trades Hall, the home of the New South Wales union movement. For over half a century, unions in New South Wales and right around the country campaign to ensure that when workers retired they were able to do so with dignity. Our objective was not to replace a very meagre Government-funded pension with a very meagre privately funded pension. Our objective was to ensure that all Australians from the top of a company to the person who opens the door and cleans the office has the opportunity to retire with dignity and comfort and security. Before the election Scott Morrison seemed to agree with this. He promised that he would keep the superannuation arrangements in place. Scott Morrison promised not to cut superannuation. After the election, it seems he's singing a different tune. We're calling on Scott Morrison to keep his promise. Scott Morrison seems to think that it's good enough for the person who cleans his office, or the people who serve him food at a cafe or serve it does his shopping at Wollies or Coles to get 9.5 percent while he gets 15.4 percent. We don't think that's fair. Why is it fair that the people who are working in a cafe get 9.5 percent, while the politicians who drink their coffee there get 15.4 percent? It's not going to be enough. It's not enough now, it won't be enough into the future. So we're calling on the Prime Minister to keep his promise. We're calling on the cross benches to do the right thing. We're not going to help Scott Morrison break his election promise. We're calling on One Nation, we’re calling on the Greens, we're calling on Jacqui Lambie, we're calling on all the crossbenchers to do the right thing. Don't help Scott Morrison break his election promise. Thank you.

ENDS