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1. What was proposedCaitlin ToughLabor · Government backbench
   Read the original wording (490 words)

   That this Assembly: (1) notes that: (a) all workers deserve to be safe at work and have access to proper workers’ compensation, including rehabilitation, if they are injured at work regardless of what industry they work in or how they are engaged to perform that work; (b) the gig economy, or the platform economy, has grown substantially over the last decade with over 100 platforms operating in Australia, the most common being in transport and food delivery, however it can cover anything from cleaning, disability support, and home maintenance. Slightly over one percent of employed people are engaged in digital platform work according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics; (c) gig work is characterised by engagement in short-term paid tasks performed through an online app matching supply and demand for the task. The work is often undertaken by vulnerable workers, including migrants and students, who have low bargaining power, low income by comparison to award wages, and limited employment conditions; (d) workers’ compensation is compulsory for all employers for their workers, however working arrangements with digital platforms mean that a gig worker is generally not employed directly by the platform owner but is treated like an independent contractor; (e) the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024 (Cwlth) amended the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cwlth) to empower the Fair Work Commission to set minimum standards for “employee-like” workers, such as gig economy workers, however this does not extend to workplace health and safety coverage; and (f) workplace health and safety legislation, including workers’ compensation, is the responsibility of each jurisdiction; (2) further notes that: (a) during the 2010s there was a harmonisation process across most jurisdictions for workplace health and safety, including the ACT. This expanded coverage of workplace health and safety laws beyond employees to include many contractors who worked for a “person conducting a business undertaking” (PCBU); (b) Safe Work Australia has expressed that given the changes to the status of gig workers under the Fair Work Act, each jurisdiction should explore extending coverage of workers’ compensation to gig workers; (c) workers’ compensation schemes vary significantly between jurisdictions however in 2023, Safe Work Australia members agreed to develop a national approach to workers’ compensation for gig workers although progress appears to be slow across the country; and (d) Queensland began a process to extend workers’ compensation coverage to gig workers in 2023, including with legislative reform; and (3) calls on the Government to: (a) investigate the expansion of workers’ compensation to gig workers in the ACT through expanding the existing private sector scheme, creating a specific gig economy scheme, or another more suitable option to ensure gig workers are not disadvantaged compared to other private sector workers in the ACT; (b) work with other jurisdictions to explore a consistent approach to the coverage of gig workers in each workers’ compensation scheme; and (c) report back to the Assembly on progress by the last sitting week of 2026. Debate ensued.

2. Proposed changeJo ClayGreens · Crossbench21 October 2025

   Grouped by key words as: added a new call or point.

   The exact wording of this change

   After paragraph (3)(b), insert: “(c) review other sectors struggling to pay for workers’ compensation premiums, including the arts and frontline community services, and consider what support government can provide for workers and to ensure sustainability of services for Canberrans;”. Debate continued.

   Agreed in a recorded vote, 13 to 8. Its wording is in the final text.

   Ayes 13

   • Chiaka Barry, James Milligan, Deborah Morris, Peter Cain, Mark Parton, Leanne Castley, Jeremy Hanson
   • Andrew Braddock, Laura Nuttall, Shane Rattenbury, Jo Clay
   • Fiona Carrick, Thomas Emerson

   Noes 8

   • Andrew Barr, Yvette Berry, Tara Cheyne, Suzanne Orr, Michael Pettersson, Rachel Stephen-Smith, Caitlin Tough, Taimus Werner-Gibbings
3. What the Assembly decidedAgreed

   Decided on the voices: no individual votes were recorded, so this doesn’t show that every MLA agreed.

   Final agreed wording, with changes marked

   That this Assembly: (1) notes that: (a) all workers deserve to be safe at work and have access to proper workers’ compensation, including rehabilitation, if they are injured at work regardless of what industry they work in or how they are engaged to perform that work; (b) the gig economy, or the platform economy, has grown substantially over the last decade with over 100 platforms operating in Australia, the most common being in transport and food delivery, however it can cover anything from cleaning, disability support, and home maintenance. Slightly over one percent of employed people are engaged in digital platform work according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics; (c) gig work is characterised by engagement in short-term paid tasks performed through an online app matching supply and demand for the task. The work is often undertaken by vulnerable workers, including migrants and students, who have low bargaining power, low income by comparison to award wages, and limited employment conditions; (d) workers’ compensation is compulsory for all employers for their workers, however working arrangements with digital platforms mean that a gig worker is generally not employed directly by the platform owner but is treated like an independent contractor; (e) the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024 (Cwlth) amended the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cwlth) to empower the Fair Work Commission to set minimum standards for “employee-like” workers, such as gig economy workers, however this does not extend to workplace health and safety coverage; and (f) workplace health and safety legislation, including workers’ compensation, is the responsibility of each jurisdiction; (2) further notes that: (a) during the 2010s there was a harmonisation process across most jurisdictions for workplace health and safety, including the ACT. This expanded coverage of workplace health and safety laws beyond employees to include many contractors who worked for a “person conducting a business undertaking” (PCBU); (b) Safe Work Australia has expressed that given the changes to the status of gig workers under the Fair Work Act, each jurisdiction should explore extending coverage of workers’ compensation to gig workers; (c) workers’ compensation schemes vary significantly between jurisdictions however in 2023, Safe Work Australia members agreed to develop a national approach to workers’ compensation for gig workers although progress appears to be slow across the country; and (d) Queensland began a process to extend workers’ compensation coverage to gig workers in 2023, including with legislative reform; and (3) calls on the Government to: (a) investigate the expansion of workers’ compensation to gig workers in the ACT through expanding the existing private sector scheme, creating a specific gig economy scheme, or another more suitable option to ensure gig workers are not disadvantaged compared to other private sector workers in the ACT; (b) work with other jurisdictions to explore a consistent approach to the coverage of gig workers in each workers’ compensation scheme; (c) review other sectors struggling to pay for workers’ compensation premiums, including the arts and frontline community services, and consider what support government can provide for workers and to ensure sustainability of services for CanberransClay; and (d) report back to the Assembly on progress by the last sitting week of 2026.

   Original and final wording compared

   taken out put in

   That this Assembly: (1) notes that: (a) all workers deserve to be safe at work and have access to proper workers’ compensation, including rehabilitation, if they are injured at work regardless of what industry they work in or how they are engaged to perform that work; (b) the gig economy, or the platform economy, has grown substantially over the last decade with over 100 platforms operating in Australia, the most common being in transport and food delivery, however it can cover anything from cleaning, disability support, and home maintenance. Slightly over one percent of employed people are engaged in digital platform work according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics; (c) gig work is characterised by engagement in short-term paid tasks performed through an online app matching supply and demand for the task. The work is often undertaken by vulnerable workers, including migrants and students, who have low bargaining power, low income by comparison to award wages, and limited employment conditions; (d) workers’ compensation is compulsory for all employers for their workers, however working arrangements with digital platforms mean that a gig worker is generally not employed directly by the platform owner but is treated like an independent contractor; (e) the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024 (Cwlth) amended the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cwlth) to empower the Fair Work Commission to set minimum standards for “employee-like” workers, such as gig economy workers, however this does not extend to workplace health and safety coverage; and (f) workplace health and safety legislation, including workers’ compensation, is the responsibility of each jurisdiction; (2) further notes that: (a) during the 2010s there was a harmonisation process across most jurisdictions for workplace health and safety, including the ACT. This expanded coverage of workplace health and safety laws beyond employees to include many contractors who worked for a “person conducting a business undertaking” (PCBU); (b) Safe Work Australia has expressed that given the changes to the status of gig workers under the Fair Work Act, each jurisdiction should explore extending coverage of workers’ compensation to gig workers; (c) workers’ compensation schemes vary significantly between jurisdictions however in 2023, Safe Work Australia members agreed to develop a national approach to workers’ compensation for gig workers although progress appears to be slow across the country; and (d) Queensland began a process to extend workers’ compensation coverage to gig workers in 2023, including with legislative reform; and (3) calls on the Government to: (a) investigate the expansion of workers’ compensation to gig workers in the ACT through expanding the existing private sector scheme, creating a specific gig economy scheme, or another more suitable option to ensure gig workers are not disadvantaged compared to other private sector workers in the ACT; (b) work with other jurisdictions to explore a consistent approach to the coverage of gig workers in each workers’ compensation scheme; [taken out: and](c) [put in: review other sectors struggling to pay for workers’ compensation premiums, including the arts and frontline community services, and consider what support government can provide for workers and to ensure sustainability of services for Canberrans; and (d)]report back to the Assembly on progress by the last sitting week of 2026. [taken out: Debate ensued.]

   Compared word by word by computer, ignoring punctuation. It shows what differs, not which change made each difference; the steps above show that.