
Issue No 102		13 July 2001

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News

Workers Win Tip Top Delegate Rights

By Andrew Casey

Pam Ray, a Newcastle union delegate at Tip Top, reckons having a union rights clause written into a new enterprise agreement is crucial to improving LHMU members' pay and conditions.

" It means I don't have to beg to get the time to work to represent our members ," says Pam, who works as a Tip Top merchandiser. ( They're the people who pack the fresh bread onto our supermarket shelves every day).

" It is in black-and-white. I've got rights to take the time to do work for my people. It's going to make an important difference for all of us."

ACTU Congress last year declared that achieving delegates rights was a top priority issue for the union movement. The Congress adopted a Charter of Workplace Union Delegate Rights and urged all unions to negotiate these rights into enterprise agreements.

The Tip Top agreement will be the fourth major enterprise agreement negotiated this year by the LHMU which includes union rights' clauses.

Giving delegates' access

The LHMU members Pam Ray represents, as the Tip Top merchandiser delegate, are spread out across most of NSW from Tweed Heads in the North, out west to Narrabri and down to the Central Coast.

This new recognition of union delegates' rights is part of an enterprise agreement being negotiated between the LHMU and Tip Top.

It will give Pam access to company telephones, faxes and photo-copying to keep in touch with her widely spread out members.

As well Pam and other union delegates will be given important representation rights when workers face warning and counselling sessions from management.

Final stages in talks

All LHMU Tip Top members will vote on the Tip Top delegates' rights charter as part of a completed enterprise agreement, which is now in the final stages of negotiation between the Company and a Union team of negotiators.

The next set of meetings with the company are scheduled for July 26 and 27, with the current Tip Top agreement running out on August 1, 2001.

Mark Boyd LHMU NSW Assistant Secretary explains: " If we are truly going to turn the LHMU into an organising union we need to empower our workplace delegates.

" The best way to do this is to get union rights clauses written into all our agreements to enhance the role of delegates in the workplace.

"The union believes the company acknowledges the importance of an effective role for the LHMU in representing workers' interests," Mark Boyd said.

"There are benefits to everyone from a collective voice dealing not just with industrial matters but general issues which arise on a day-to-day basis."

Winning delegates' rights

The LHMU is committed to winning union delegates rights at all our workplaces.

The Tip Top breakthrough is the fourth such agreement this year where new and extensive Union Rights clauses have been written into enterprise agreements.

LHMU union delegates at Wattyl Paints, Hotel IBIS and the Starwood Hotels group have won similar rights this year.

" Certain basic delegates' rights are essential to the ability to organise and will be pursued in all our bargaining of new agreements," Mark Boyd said.

"Our attitude is that the new Tip Top union rights' clauses are just the first step and, incrementally, we will seek to improve the rights of our workplace delegates in future enterprise agreement bargaining rounds."

The Tip Top enterprise agreement allows the LHMU to organise workers on the premises with delegates given paid leave to speak to all new employees as part of the induction program to explain the role of the union and benefits of union membership.

As part of this agreement the company will allow union delegates to attend, without loss of pay, approved training courses.

More info about the LHMU's campaigns for delegates rights

Click here to find out more about what it means to be an LHMU Delegate.

Or if you want to know something about the LHMU's Delegates Rights campaigns click here to read the South Australian Charter of Delegates Rights.

You can also read the ACTU Delegates Rights Charter here. What's your view on delegate rights

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  Issue 102 contents

Interview: Jolly Green Giant
Senator Bob Brown on the upcoming federal poll, balances of power and what the Greens can teach the trade union movement.

Workplace: Call Centre Takeover
Theresa Davison brings us this real-life story from the coal face of the call centre industry.

E-Change: 1.2 Community � The Ultimate Network
Peter Lewis and Michael Gadiel look at the potential for network technologies to reconnect communities.

International: Child's Play
Union Aid Abroad-APHEDA has recently entered a new alliance with the Child Labour Schools Company to support a project for child labourers in India.

History: Flowers to the Rebels Faded
With the departure of our own Wobbly, a look at the development of the Wobblies in Australia and their view of Labor politicians and the work ethic seems timely.

East Timor: A Dirty Little War
In this extract from his new book, John Martinkus recounts the scenes in Dili immediately following the independence ballot.

Satire: Telstra Share Failure Ends City-Bush Divide: Everybody Screwed Equally
Communications Minister Richard Alston today claimed that the government had fulfilled its promise to ensure that the bush was not disproportionately disadvantaged by Telstra's privatisation.

Review: Cheesy Management
Currently climbing Australian best-seller lists is the 'life-changing' motivational book 'Who Moved My Cheese?' Rowan Cahill has a nibble but doesn't like the taste.

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» Nurses Seek Urgent Action on Pay

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» Telstra Halts Latest Privatisation Plans

» Requiem for the Banks

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» Minister for Caged Hair Gets Hot Welcome in West

» Cleaner Wins Right to Attend Family Reunion

» Howard Cuts R&D Spending by 15 Per Cent

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» Activist Notebook