Coalition Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has condemned One Nation for employing a convicted rapist.

Following an outcry last week — led by the Coalition — over One Nation's employment of Sean Black, who was jailed in 2018 for rape and later failed to overturn the conviction on appeal, party leader Pauline Hanson said over the weekend he had been dismissed, but not before she said she was "sickened" by criticism of his employment.

In response to the saga, Senator Price — who has previously been outspoken in criticising the employment of people convicted of domestic violence in predominantly government-funded roles — told The Australian: "If you can't pass a Working With Children Check, you shouldn't be working in positions of responsibility in our political system. It's that simple."

"There is no place for rapists in our political system ... That should be a basic expectation shared by all parties and supported by the Australian community," she said.

"It should never have got this far."

Speaking to Sky News on Sunday night, Senator Hanson said of Mr Black's employment, "he's gone, he's finished", before adding that she had received "no concerns raised by the other female staff" and argued he had done a "great job".

"It's gutter politics," she said in response to the criticism, led by Coalition MPs Garth Hamilton and James Paterson, "it sickens me to what has happened".

She said Mr Black, who had initially been hired by the far-right populist party as an adviser in 2020, "did his time for the crime he was convicted of" and was now "trying to get on with his life".

"What now? What happens?" she asked. "[Put him] on the scrapheap? Or should we bring in the death penalty for anyone who commits a crime?"

Senator Price, who defected from the Nationals party room last year and now holds the shadow small business portfolio, said Mr Black had "no place" in Australian politics and should never have been hired by One Nation.

"There has been commentary about second chances and redemption, and of course our justice system recognises that. But positions of responsibility demand a higher standard," she told The Australian.

"As someone who has consistently advocated for stronger action on domestic violence and sexual abuse, I've been very clear that standards and accountability matter, especially when it comes to serious crimes against the person."

On Monday, two-time deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce, who defected from the Nationals to One Nation, defended Senator Hanson, who has been vocal in pushing tough-on-crime policies.

In comments reported by Guardian Australia, he argued convicted criminals deserved a chance at "redemption".

"I can see where this is going to go," he said.

"People are going to start suggesting all range of people who have had criminal convictions. You know, this is the game that then gets played."