Liberals
Must
Rethink
Stance
on New
Safety
Laws
after
City
Building
Accident
SA
Unions
says the
Liberal
Opposition's
delays
to the
new Work
Health
and
Safety
Bill are
seriously
endangering
people's
safety,
after a
devastating
workplace
accident
...
media
release
2/12/11
Independents
to Hear
from
Workers
and
Families
on
Safety
SA
Unions
held a
forum to
put the
case to
the
Legislative
Council
Independents
that
they
should
throw
their
support
behind
planned
new work
safety
laws.
The
Independents
will
hear
real
stories
of
working
people,
their
families
and
their
colleagues
about
the
devastating
effects
workplace
death
and
injury
can
have.
The
Safety
Bill is
currently
before
State
Parliament
and will
be
debated
again
tin the
House of
Assembly
on 8
November.
These
planned
new laws
have
been the
subject
of three
yeas of
national
negotiation
with
unions
and
employer
groups,
and are
essential
to
having
nationally
consistent
safety
laws to
both
protect
working
people
and to
give
businesses
certainty
and
consistency.
.... read
on
WorkCover
Laws
Need
Fixing
SA
Unions
will be
running
new
television
ads
demanding
change
to the
State's
workers
compensation
laws.
The
State
Government
must
make the
laws
fair for
people
injured
at work
and SA
Unions
will
fight to
ensure
they
receive
fair
treatment
if they
are hurt
and to
ensure
they
have
safe
working
conditions
.... read
on
Urgent
Call to
Support
Strong
Safety
Laws in
South
Australia
Across
the
country
states
and
territories
have
agreed
to a
single
set of
OHS laws
that
better
protect
workers
for a
safe
workplace
- these
laws are
now in
jeopardy
as the
Liberal
Party in
SA with
support
of big
business
are
trying
to stop
these
laws in
Parliament.
Your
help is
needed
urgently
... read
on
Work
Health
and
Safety
Bill -
More
Important
Than
Ever
The
serious
work
accident
on a
Bella
Constructions
housing
site on
26
September
shows
just how
dangerous
work can
be - and
how much
we need
the new
nationally
consistent
workplace
safety
laws.
Today's
accident
shows
how
dangerous
the
industry
is and
that
safety
must be
taken
seriously,
however
the SA
Liberal
Party
and its
bug
business
mates
are
trying
to block
the new
laws in
Parliament,
despite
three
years of
negotiation
...
media
release
26/9/11
A
Charter
for
Working
South
Australians
South
Australian
unions
kicked
off the
next
phase of
their
campaign
for a
better
and fair
state
with the
release
of a
Charter
for
Working
South
Australians.
The
comprehensive
list of
demands
sets out
the
priorities
working
people
want to
see in
SA to
improve
the
lives of
all
South
Australians
...
media
release
24/8/11
...
download
charter
Go to
www.saworkingpeople.com.au
for more
information
and to
have
your
say.
WHS Bill
- Libs
Walk
Away
from
Injured
South
Australians
SA
Unions
says the
Liberal
Party is
abandoning
working
South
Australians
by not
supporting
planned
new
worker
safety
legislation.
These
planned
new
nationally
consistent
laws
will cut
red tape
by
ensuring
the same
safety
laws
apply
right
across
the
country,
but the
Liberal
Party is
opposing
the
right of
entry
for
union
officials
to
inspect
worksites
for
safety
issues
... read
on
[15/9/11]
Injured
South
Australians
Win
Fight on
Medical
Panels
Today
27/6/11
the
Supreme
Court
found
that
WorkCover's
Medical
Panels
do not
have the
power to
be the
ultimate
decision
maker
when it
comes to
determining
issues
around
an
injured
worker's
capacity
and
questions
about
their
injury.
This is
an
important
win for
injured
workers
and
vindicates
South
Australian
Unions
three
year
campaign
about
the
State
government's
2008
amendments
to the
WorkCover
Legislation.
Unions
have
argued
that the
Medical
Panels
are
secretive
kangaroo
courts,
at which
injured
people
have no
right to
take
advocates
with
them for
support
and
advice,
and no
right of
appeal.
These
Medical
Panels
cost
more
than $9m
a year
and the
Supreme
Court
has now
found
that
their
opinions
are not
binding
on the
courts.
Anyone
can be
injured
at work
and find
themselves
in the
middle
of the
WorkCover
nightmare
where
they
currently
have no
rights
to
representation
and no
rights
to
appeal.
South
Australians
union
now call
on the
new
Minister
for
Workers
Rehabilitation,
Jack
Snelling
to act
on this
decision
immediately...
media
release
27/6/11
Clean
Start
Campaign
A report
compiled
by
United
Voice,
the
cleaners'
union
finds
the
state of
the
retail
cleaning
industry
is in a
state of
crisis -
a danger
to the
public
and
cleaners
alike.
The
report
finds
that due
to the
unsustainable
business
model of
contract
cleaning
the
industry
is in a
state of
crisis.
United
Voice
are
focussing
on
International
Cleaners'
Day to
hold
events
and
rallies
to raise
awareness
of the
crisis
in
cleaning....
more
information
Two Big
Wins for
Working
People
- Will
there be
more
tomorrow?
On the
day
before
the
State
budget,
there
have
been big
wins for
South
Australian
working
people.
Staff in
the
community
sector
in South
Australia
have won
their
four
year
fight
for
equal
pay and
the
Public
Service
Association
will be
able to
take
their
case
against
the
State
Government
for
unilaterally
taking
away
their
members'
long
service
leave
entitlements
to the
High
Court.....
media
release
8/6/11
SA
Working
People
Put
Budget
Demands
on the
Table
SA
Unions
says the
the
Premier
must
take
control
of the
budget
and put
working
South
Australians
first.
Last
year's
budget
cuts are
being
rolled
out -
that
means
$2billion
in cuts
are
about to
hit the
community,
and the
South
Australian
community
now
faces
more
cuts on
top of
that
$2billion.
SA
Unions
wants to
see a
budge
that
truly
represents
Labor
values
and
supports
working
South
Australians.
....
media
release
3/6/11
Minimum
Wage
Case -
Decision
handed
down 3
June
2011
Fair
Work
Australia
has
decided
to
increase
minimum
wages
for 1.4
million
award-dependent
workers
by
3.4%.
For the
entry-level
workers,
this is
an extra
$19.40
per
week.
For most
award-dependent
workers,
it is
more
than
$20per
week.
The
decision
will
take
effect
from 1st
July.
Freedom
of
Information
Reveals
WorkCover
Spending
Millions
on
Doctors
instead
of
Injured
South
Australians
The
State
Government's
workers
compensation
scheme
is
wasting
millions
of
dollars
each
year on
doctors
which
should
be spent
on
getting
injured
South
Australians
back to
work.....
media
release
8/5/11
Another
SA
Worker
Tragically
Dies at
Work
Where is
Pat
Conlon's
commitment
to
better
safety
on the
job?
The
Worker
Health
and
Safety
Bill
which
has been
the
subject
of two
years
worth of
consultation
has now
been
delayed
by the
new
Industrial
Relations
Minister,
Pat
Conlon
.....
media
release
5/5/11
WARNING
TO
PREMIER:
UNIONS
INTENSIFY
STATE
BUDGET
FIGHT
South
Australian
unions
are
warning
Premier
Mike
Rann to
learn
the
lessons
of the
New
South
Wales
State
election
and
start
listening
to South
Australians.
SA
Unions
has
written
to every
Government
Member
of
Parliament
warning
them
that
working
South
Australians
have
become
increasingly
concerned
about
the
policies
and
directions
of this
Labor
Government.
....
media
release
19/4/11
SOUTH
AUSTALIAN
FIRIES
TAKE
BUDGET
PROTEST
TO
RUNDLE
MALL
South
Australian
fire
fighters
will
today be
hitting
Adelaide's
busiest
streets
to
protest
about
the
State
Government's
budget
cuts.
United
Firefighters
Union
Industrial
Officer,
Joe
Szakacs
says
nearly
one
thousand
Firefighters
have had
their
negotiated
working
conditions
attacked
by the
State
government
in the
last
Budget.
While
our
firefighters
were
doing
their
job at
house
fires
and road
accidents,
the
State
government
snuck
into
Parliament
and
legislated
away
their
working
entitlements....
media
release
11/4/11
TREASURER
TURNS UP
BUT
REJECTED
BY OWN
PARTY!
South
Australian
unions
say the
Treasurer
Jack
Snelling
has
failed
to
explain
his
government's
attack
on
working
conditions
of South
Australians.
At the
Special
ALP
State
Council
meeting
24/3/11
the
Treasurer
failed
to
convince
his own
Party
members
with his
explanation
of why
the
legislation
to rip
away the
entitlements
of South
Australian
public
sector
workers
has not
yet been
repealed
and warn
that
that
this
attack
could
spread
to
working
South
Australians
in the
private
sector.
Jamie
Newlyn,
SA
Unions
President
says
South
Australian
working
people
should
be
worried
that
there
will be
more
cuts to
services
and jobs
in the
upcoming
Budget.
SA
unions
have
vowed to
continue
campaigning
until
the
government
actually
starts
listening
to the
community
and
reverses
its
Budget
cuts.
Website:
www.saworkingpeople.com.au
:
....media
release
25/3/11
Correctional
Services
Officers
Apply
"Lockdown"
to
Minister's
Office
Union
protests
against
the
State
Government
will
continue
today,
with
correctional
services
officers
rallying
at the
office
of
Correctional
Services
Minister,
Tom
Koutsantonis.
Unions
have
vowed to
keep
protesting
until
the
State
government
started
listening
to the
community
and
restored
these
negotiated
working
conditions
to South
Australian
working
people
...media
release
25/2/11
Unions
Take
Fight
Against
Budget
Cuts to
Alan
Sibbons
MP
Union today
are
meeting
with the
Member
for
Mitchell,
Alan
Sibbons
as part
of the
ongoing
campaign
against
the Rann
Government's
budget
of a
thousand
cuts.
Mr
Sibbons,
a former
unionist
must
appreciate
how
appalling
it is
for a
government
to
simply
legislate
away the
negotiated
working
entitlements
of its
employees.
The
delegation
will
include
representatives
from the
fire
fighters,
ambulance
officers,
public
servants,
teachers
and
nurses
unions.
....media
release
18/2/11
Rally -
Chloe
Fox
Electorate
Office,
16
February
Unionists
today
will
target
the
Government's
most
marginal
Member
of
Parliament,
Chloe
Fox as
part of
their
ongoing
campaign
against
the Rann
Government's
budget
of a
thousand
cuts
....media
release
16/2/11
Cynical
Attempt
to Gag
Protest
Won't
Work
Premier
Rann
gave his
word one
year ago
that he
would
change a
section
of the
Workers
Compensation
Act
which
takes
away
workers'
wages if
they are
in
dispute
with an
employer
about
their
workers
compensation
claim.
On the
eve of a
major
union
protest
about
cuts to
working
conditions
for
South
Australian
workers,
the
Government
has had
a last
minute
panic
about
union
unrest
within
the
Party.....read
on
Train
and Tram
Drivers
Join
Protest
2/12/10
....
read on
Firies
Turn Up
the Heat
17/11/10
....read
on
Nurses
Join
Unions
Fight
12/11/10
....read
on
SA
Unions
Warns:
Who Will
Be Next?
SA
Unions
says all
workers
should
be
worried
about
the
attack
on the
wages
and
conditions
of our
public
sector
workers.
We don't
think
public
sector
workers
will be
alone in
having
their
rights
at work
slashed
- who
will be
next?
....read
on
Slash
and Burn
Bill
Mean
Government's
ineptitude
in
relation
to its
Budget
slash-and-burn
Bill is
outweighed
only by
its
meanness.
The Bill
was
hurriedly
redrafted
over the
dinner
break
when it
was
discovered
by the
Opposition
that the
Minister's
chauffeurs
were not
covered
by the
Bill....
now they
will
also
lose
their
entitlements
:
29
October
2010
....read
on
Stop
Foley's
Bill
March on
26th
October....
assemble
at
Victoria
Square
and
march to
Parliament
House -
support
the
public
sector
workers
....click
here for
flyer
Full
Page
Advertisement
Protests
Continue
- Public
Sector
Workers
Fight
Intensifies
8/10/10
....read
on
Protests
Grow -
Workers
Vow to
Continue
Fight on
14
October
8/10/10
...read
on
ARK
TRIBE
VICTORY
MUST
SPELL
END FOR
ABCC
Rigger
Ark
Tribe
won his
legal
battle
today
against
the ABCC
in a
victory
that
underscores the need to protect the basic human rights of Australian
workers,
including the right to remain silent.
SA Unions will call on the support of unions to continue the campaign
for
Prime
Minister Gillard to abolish the ABCC and the divisive and patently
unjust laws ....>> read on
[24/11/10]
Visit
the
www.rightsonsite.org.au
for more
information

Rann
Government
Treating
Injured
Workers
Like
Bikie
Gangs
The Full
Bench of
the
Supreme
Court
will
today
8/12/10
be
hearing
a case
which
challenges
WorkCover
for
taking
away the
legal
rights
of
injured
workers.
Under
the Rann
government's
changes
if you
challenge
a
decision
of
WorkCover,
they
take
away
your
benefits.
SA
Unions
says the
Government
are in a
sense
treating
injured
South
Australian
workers
as if
they are
members
of bikie
gangs
... read
on
8/12/10
Tough
Times
with
State
Budget
The
Treasurer
Kevin
Foley
has
lifted
the lid
on a
budget
of
horrors
and
created
a
Pandora's
Box.
Not only
has Mr
Foley
announced
savage
cuts
that
will
strip
more
than
3,000
jobs and
hit
valuable
public
services;
it's
clear
now that
there's
worse to
come...>>read
on
Young
Women
and
Sexual
Harassment
As
debate
sparked
by the
David
Jones -
Mark
McInnes
-
Allanah
Hill
controversy
continues
to
simmer
across
Australia,
a South
Australian
study to
be
released
this
week
shows an
alarming
pattern
of
harassment
by men
in
positions
of
authority
against
young
women
employees.
South
Australian
Young
Workers
Legal
Service
will
present
its
findings
to the
Women
and IR
Conference
in
Darwin
this
week ...>>read
on
Safety
Sacrificed
to
Building
Pressures
and Bad
Laws
The
construction
union
says
safety
on large
South
Australian
building
sites
has
arguably
plunged
in
recent
weeks,
despite
the
death of
a worker
at the
desalination
plant.
CFMEU
Assistant
Secretary,
Darren
Roberts
says
it's
extraordinary
that
despite
all the
outcry
and
publicity
surrounding
the
desal
tragedy
that
similar
accidents
have
occurred
across
the
city....>>
read on
WorkChoices -
Whatever
the Name,
Never
Again
The
newly
elected
President
of the
ACTU Ged
Kearney
visited Adelaide on
Thursday
22 July
to
launch
the
union
movement's
election
campaign
in South
Australia.
The
launch
included
workers
talking
about
their
experiences
under
WorkChoices
and why
it is
imperative
the
Liberals
not be
given
another
chance
to wind
back the
clock on
worker's
rights.
SA
Unions
Secretary,
Janet
Giles
says the
launch
marks
the
start in
earnest
of the
grassroots
campaign
against
the
return
of the
Liberals
and
their
discredited
WorkChoices
legislation.
...>>
read on
New Fair
Work
Minimum
Wage
Rise
The new
fair
work
minimum
wage
rise
awarded
on 3rd
June
2010 by
the Fair
Pay
Commission
will
help
130,000
low paid
South
Australian
Workers.
The $26
extra a
week in
the pay
packets
of the
lowest
paid
workers
will
take
their
wage to
$570.00
a week.
Now that
the vast
majority
of SA
workers
are
covered
under
the new
federal
Fair
Work
Laws,
this
decision
is even
more
important
than in
the
past.
It
further
demonstrates
the
importance
of
rejecting
Tony
Abbott's
thinly
veiled
plans to
reinstate
the
worst
aspects
of
WorkChoices,
under
WorkChoices,
fairness
and the
cost of
living
weren't
considered,
under
the new
work
laws,
they
are.
SA
Unions
says a
decent
living
wage is
fundamental
to a
fair
society
and
strong
economy
...>>
read on
WorkCover's
Dodgy
Levy Cut
The
South
Australian
union
movement
is
calling
for the
state
government
to fix
the
unfair
WorkCover
levy
decision
in a
full
page
advertisement
20/5/10
..>>click
here
The move
is a
direct
response
to
Business
SA's
unashamed
gloating
over
WorkCover
levy
cuts at
the
expense
of
injured
workers>>..
read on
Union
Membership
on the
Rise in
SA
The
latest
ABS data
shows
that
union
membership
in South
Australia
is on
the
rise, in
line
with the
trend
nationally.
In SA,
union
membership
jumped
from
19.4% to
20.6%.
SA
Unions
says it
is a
strong
and
heartening
recovery
after
the dark
days of
WorkChoices.
>>..read
on
Unions
Welcome
Long
Called
for Tax
Changes
South
Australia's
peak
unions'
organisation
SA
Unions,
welcomed
the
changes
to
taxation
contained
in the
Henry
Review
as good
for
working
families
in our
state.
The
changes
reflect
key
elements
of SA
Unions'
forward
looking
strategy
"A
Fair
Share of
the
Future"
which
examines
ways of
securing
the
state's
economic
growth
in a
socially
responsible
manner.
It's
time for
mining
companies
to stop
freeloading
and
contribute
to the
community
infrastructure.
>>..
read on
WorkCover
Levy
Scandal
SA
Unions
is
demanding
the
state
government
intervene
to
protect
injured
workers'
compensation
entitlements
from
being
gouged
by
employers.
The
WorkCover
Board
having
decided
to
reduce
the
employer
levy
contribution
to the
fund
effectively
means
injured
workers
will pay
for a
financial
windfall
for
employers.
This is
a
scandalous
decision
by a
Board
which is
clearly
willing
to
compromise
the
welfare
of
injured
workers
for the
financial
benefit
of
business.
SA
Unions
specifically
calls on
the ALP
to
implement
the
WorkCover
policy
commitment
it made
at is
last
state
convention,
to
reinstate
fairness
into the
scheme
>>..
read on
Good
Result
for
Working
Families
SA
Unions
says
Labor's
election
victory
is a
good
result
for
working
families
in South
Australia,
securing
important
and hard
fought
industrial
rights....>>
read on
Liberals
Confirm
Workers'
Fears
SA
Unions
says the
Liberal
Party's
decision
not to
publicly
reveal
details
of its
Industrial
Relations
policy
will
send a
shiver
down the
spine of
every
worker
who
values
their
job and
their
pay.
Iain
Evans,
Liberal
Industrial
Relations
spokesman
does not
seem to
understand
the
difference
between
the
state
and
federal
IR
system
and
indicated
that the
SA
Liberals
IR
position
would be
dictated
by their
federal
masters
....>>
read on
WorkCover
a Hot
Topic
The
Liberals'
swift
release
of its
WorkCover
policy
has been
welcomed
by SA
Unions
and
indicates
the
depth of
public
concern
surrounding
this
issue.
Injured
workers
are
paying
the
price of
unfair
laws
that
were put
forward
by Labor
and
supported
by the
Liberals,
so both
major
parties
are
culpable,
but both
have the
chance
to right
the
wrongs.....>>
read on
Employment
Figures for
SA
ABS
Trend
Labour Force
Survey data
(released
today) show
that South
Australian
employment
increased
0.3 per cent
(+2,600
persons) in
January
2010,
raising
total
employment
to 802,400
persons.
This marked
the first
time that SA
employment
has exceeded
800,000
persons.
Employment
has risen
for five
consecutive
months, and
was 1.5 per
cent higher
than the
same time a
year ago.
Both full
and
part-time
employment
increased in
SA last
month.
There
were 41,200
unemployed
persons in
SA in
January
2010, 1,500
(3.5%) fewer
than the
month
before.
Compared to
a year ago,
unemployment
has fallen
by 13.3 per
cent (-6,300
persons).
South
Australian
unemployment
is at its
lowest level
since July
2008.
The SA
unemployment
rate
declined 0.2
percentage
points last
month, to
4.9 per cent
– the lowest
unemployment
rate since
June 2008
(4.8 per
cent) and
the third
lowest
unemployment
rate of all
Australian
states and
territories.
Compared to
the national
average, the
SA
unemployment
rate was
half a
percentage
point lower.