Sunday penalty rates are a fair working arrangement that act as an important incentive for employees, Maitland service station worker Georgina Jelic says.
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Ms Jelic said she chose to work almost every Saturday and Sunday to make enough money to pay her rent and car repayments.
She said she had been willing to sacrifice her weekend to continue paying her bills.
“I usually work every Sunday night and I wouldn’t do that unless I was getting penalty rates,” Ms Jelic said.
“There needs to be something in it for the person working.
“I’ve only recently got my own car and I wouldn’t be able to afford it without penalty rates.”
Ms Jelic said she had been hunting for an additional casual job, but the high unemployment rate in Maitland and economic uncertainty meant there were few opportunities.
“I’ve been looking for another casual job but nowhere is hiring, it’s very hard already at the moment,” she said.
Ms Jelic said she spent her nights alone at the service station in fear of robbery, but was willing to take the risk for the extra pay.
“You hope that it won’t be tonight, but you have to work, you don’t have a choice,” Ms Jelic said.
“If you think about all the teenagers and older people working for penalty rates at the moment, it’s not fair to take that away.”
