Come
Celebrate
the New
Industrial
Laws
July 1 2009
is the first
day of the
new
Industrial
Laws and
Fair Work
Australia.
Unions have
worked hard
to ensure
better laws
for workers
and are
celebrating
our
achievements.
Join us to
mark the
occasion :
Wednesday 1
July
Wheatsheaf
Hotel
39 George
Street,
Thebarton
from 6.00 pm
Entertainment
provided by
the Lonely
Cosmonauts
Come along
and have a
great night
We Don't
Want Your
Construction
Laws Here
SA Unions
says to
Gillard that
there is no
need for
special
construction
industry
laws in this
state, and
that such
laws are
hurting our
building
industry and
worker
safety.
Read on>>
Fair
Work
Australia
Welcomed by
SA Unions
SA Unions
welcomed the
decision of
the State
Government
to be the
first state
to formally
adopt the
new Fair
Work laws.
It has been
done in a
way that
guarantees
South
Australians
will
continue to
have a say
about
industrial
laws for our
state.
Read on >>
SA
Unions
Budget
Falters
Behind Bold
Federal
Vision
SA Unions
says Kevin
Foley's 2009
state budget
is out of
step with
the federal
government's
strategic
vision for
weathering
the
financial
crisis.
This budget
is pursuing
cuts and
caps with
little
commitment
at the state
level
towards
protecting
existing
jobs and
increasing
skills
training.
Read on >>
Abolish
the ABCC -
Support Ark
Tribe
On
Tuesday
morning 9
June 2009
a member of
the CFMEU, a
rigger
called Ark
Tribe, will
be appearing
at the
Elizabeth
Magistrates
Court to
face charges
that he
refused to
answer
questions
from the
ABCC about a
union
meeting last
year.
Please come
along to
support Ark
in our
campaign to
abolish the
ABCC.
Tuesday 9
June
9.30 am
Elizabeth
Magistrates
Court, 15
Frobisher
Road,
Elizabeth
Ark
Tribe’s
story can be
viewed on
youtube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofB0TKkNPmM
Restore
Justice
and End
NT
Intervention
A
poignant
exhibition
of the
hardships
created
by the
Howard
government's
2007
intervention
into
Northern
Territory
Aboriginal
Communities
opened
in
Adelaide
tonight
at the
ArtLab,
70
Kintore
Avenue,
Adelaide.
Called
"autonomies"
it is a
photographic
exhibition
and
aural
journey
into the
lives of
Aboriginal
people
stripped
of their
independence.
While it
is good
news
that
Prime
Minister
Kevin
Rudd on
Friday
announced
that the
Racial
Discrimination
Act
would be
reinstated,
this
doesn't
address
the
overall
concerns
of
communities
living
under
this
dehumanising
regime."
Read
on>>
Landmark
Industrial
Ruling
for
Victim
Support
SA
Unions
hope the
long
awaited
conclusion
of the
industrial
death
case of
Daniel
Madeley
will be
seized
as an
opportunity
to
better
support
victims'
families
Read
on>>
Workers
Rally
for
Safety
Workers
rallied
outside
the
meeting
of the
Workplace
Relations
Ministers
and the
Acting
Prime
Minister,
Julia
Gillard
to call
for the
abolition
of
special
laws in
the
Construction
Industry
and the
introduction
of the
strongest
possible
Occupational,
Health
and
Safety
laws
across
every
state in
the
nation.
Unions
are
calling
for the
strongest
possible
laws in
every
state
and
territory
that
ensure:
-
The
absolute
duty of
care of
employers
to
provide
a safe
workplace
-
Proper
and
effective
right of
entry
provisions
for
union
officials
-
A strong
system
of
independent
health
and
safety
representatives
in
workplaces
-
A strong
system
of
prosecution
for
employers
who
breach
safety
laws
-
The
abolition
of
special
laws in
the
Construction
Industry
>>..
read on
Dead and
Buried -
Good
Riddance
to
WorkChoices
SA
Unions
says
tens of
thousands
of South
Australians
and
millions
of
the
nation's
voters
can take
pride in
their
efforts
to get
rid of
the
Coalition's
awful
WorkChoices
law, and
the
return
to
workplace
fairness
that's
heralded
by the
passage
of the
Fair
Work
Bill.
The
'Your
Rights
at Work'
community
campaign
and its
thousands
of
tireless
and
committed
volunteers
deserve
recognition
for the
efforts
at
restoring
workplace
balance
and
fairness.
SA
Unions
are
particularly
relieved
that an
attempt
to
increase
the
definition
of a
small
business
as
employing
15
workers
up to 20
was
scuppered.
It means
many
thousands
of
vulnerable
part
time and
casual
workers
-
especially
women,
migrants
and the
young
will no
have
reasonable
protection
from
unfair
dismissal.
>>..
read on
Another Near
Miss on City
Construction
Site - No
Joke - CFMEU
Says Safety
First
The CFMEU
says unions
must be
given
greater
ability to
ensure
safety
standards on
building
sites after
another
incident at
a city
construction
site today.
An incident
involving a
crane coming
in contact
with
formwork
came very
close to
endangering
the public.
“This was no
April fools
joke” CFMEU
secretary
Martin
O’Malley
says.
It follows
an accident
three weeks
ago where a
bin lifter
fell outside
the worksite
on Pirie
street at
Hindmarsh
Square, and
another last
week where a
rack was
overloaded
and
collapsed,
narrowly
missing a
worker.
"Three
major
incidents in
around three
weeks,
combined
with
numerous
injury
reports on a
daily basis
shows
something’s
not right”
Mr O’Malley
says.
Senator
Nick
Xenophon
- Urged
to Put
SA Jobs
First
Senate
amendments
to the
Fair
Work
Bill
around
the
definition
of a
small
business
would
have a
big
impact
in South
Australia
and SA
Senator
Nick
Xenophon
is being
urged to
put SA
at the
heart of
considerations
over
unfair
dismissal
laws.
>>..
read on
People
Want
Protection
from
Unfair
Dismissal
SA
Unions
says the
Federal
Opposition
is
utterly
out of
touch
with the
Australian
community
in its
bid to
stymie
the
introduction
of
fairer
work
laws.
We call
on all
Senators
to give
workers
the
protection
they
demand,
especially
with job
security
more
important
in these
uncertain
times of
global
economic
crisis.
>>..
read on
Clean
Start
Campaign
Contract
cleaning
firms
have
flocked
to the
historic
Clean
Start
Union
Collective
Agreement,
and now
contracting
firms
cleaning
more
than
half of
Australia's
capital
cities
have
signed.
Nearly
30
companies
in total
have now
signed.
They
signed
because
cleaners
stuck
together
and
campaigned
together
until
the
companies
agreed
that
they
deserve
fair
jobs and
decent
pay.
>>..
read on
For more
information
visit
the
Clean
Start
Campaign
Website.
ABBC
- How
does it
affect
Construction
Workers?
The
Australian
Building
and
Construction
Commission
or ABBC
was
established
by the
Howard
Govt in
2005 in
response
to the
Cole
Royal
Commission
into
corruption
in the
building
industry.
Catherine
Zengerer
from
Your
Rights
at Night
Radio
Show
investigates
the
history
of the
ABCC,
talks to
a union
delegate
to find
out how
workers
in the
construction
industry
are
affected
by the
laws
that
apply
only to
workers
in that
industry,
and to
ACTU
Secretary,
Jeff
Lawrence,
to find
out what
the
ACTU's
response
is to
the
ALP's
position
that the
ABCC
will
remain
in force
until at
least
2010.