Power prices, penalty rates and budget repair will dominate the final fortnight of federal parliament before the budget.
Labor MPs return to Canberra having witnessed Mark McGowan's team unseat the Barnett government in Western Australia, and after consolidating the federal opposition's two-party preferred lead over the coalition in the polls.
Malcolm Turnbull's net approval rating of minus-17, according to the Essential poll, is his worst since taking power in September 2015.
The prime minister has spent the two-week parliamentary break seeking to make progress on a trade deal with Indonesia, talking up "fair" budget repair, discussing a new deal on affordable and reliable energy, and promoting the benefits of a penalty rates cut for jobs and small business.
An announcement on Snowy Hydro 2.0 and talks with gas company executives were overshadowed by a bizarre, daggers-drawn media conference involving South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill and federal Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg.
Bill Shorten has been travelling the country talking up jobs and training and homing in on regional communities which aren't feeling the economic love.
With the Senate not having sat to debate legislation since February 16, the government will be seeking crossbench approval for $1.6 billion in savings to pay for childcare reforms.
An inquiry report on the bill is due to be tabled on Monday.
However, further watering down the savings from changes to welfare spending could risk losing the support of Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm and former Liberal Cory Bernardi.
"If it doesn't result in sizeable improvements in the deficit and they give it away to something else we won't vote for it," Senator Leyonhjelm told AAP on Friday.
Tax cuts for business could pass if the government seeks to limit them to smaller firms.
Senator Leyonhjelm said "progress is progress" when it comes to tax reform.
Labor will step up the pressure on Mr Turnbull over the Fair Work Commission's penalty rates decision, with Mr Shorten introducing in a private bill on Monday to block the cuts in the retail, hospitality, fast food and pharmacy sectors.
The commission is still considering how to implement its decision and minimise the impact on take home pay, and Mr Turnbull argues its independence and well-researched findings should be respected.
The Senate is awaiting advice on whether One Nation's Peter Georgiou is well enough to take his brother-in-law Rod Culleton's spot this week in the upper house, after the High Court ruled Mr Culleton was ineligible to stand for parliament.
Mr Georgiou has been in hospital in Perth with the measles.
