A new Coalition senator will call for major industrial relations reform on Wednesday, arguing minimum wages and penalty rates are driving down employment for the most needy.

Queensland Liberal-National Amanda Stoker will give her maiden speech to the Senate and call on the conservative side of politics to make the case for changes to industrial relations laws, including for cashed up unions to be stripped of their tax-free status.

The lawyer and former associate for High Court Justice Ian Callinan replaced former attorney-general George Brandis in the Senate in March.

The first speech – traditionally used by new members and senators to outline their political philosophy and parliamentary priorities – comes amid significant change in the make up and party affiliation of the upper house.

Senator Stoker will argue for the Coalition's company tax and personal income tax cuts, describing lower taxes as a chance to deliver better standards of living to Australians, helping create work opportunities for the unemployed.

"It is unacceptable that youth unemployment in outback Queensland sits at 54.2 per cent but there are some in this Parliament blocking job creation," she will say.

"It's not rocket science: reduced corporate taxes lead to higher investment, investment leads to more job creation, and the tightening of the employment market drives wages up. Similarly, reduced income tax means more money in the pockets of Australians, when spent stimulating demand."

The 35-year-old will outline a series of proposals to lift productivity to boost the economy.

"Industrial relations reform is something our nation desperately needs and which the conservative side of politics should promote.

"If we want employers to give a person on the margins of the employment market a chance, even when to do so might be a leap of faith, we need to support them to do so by removing the disincentive of punitive unfair dismissal laws.

"We need to be prepared to make the difficult case to the community that says the imposition of rising minimum wages and penalty rates reduce job opportunities for those most in need.

"I understand that telling lower paid workers they will take home more today is popular, but we need to be honest enough to say frankly that each time we do, we deny a start to someone who wants a job.

"They are a burden that hits small business hard, and often leads to layoffs and cuts in hours. The unions rail against casualisation or layoffs, but it is the direct product of the policies for which they advocate."

Senator Stoker will call for competition in workplace representation, accusing the left of hypocrisy in railing against big business while supporting trade unions morphing into multi-million dollar businesses with sophisticated commercial operations.

"We must never give up on the principle that government should provide the lightest possible burden on the entrepreneurial spirit of Australians," she will say.

"We should test every piece of legislation, every regulation against the standards of necessity and efficacy, until red tape and green tape no longer hold back the projects needed for Queensland to grow and prosper. "

ENDS