
Issue No 103		20 July 2001

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News

Five-Star Action From Security Guards

By Andrew Casey

Sydney's 5-star Wentworth Hotel thought they could save some money, maybe make a bit of extra profit, by cutting back the hours of licensed security staff.

Instead all they've done is empower the union, with nearly a dozen new members signing on.

" Our members were angry, and they got organised, when they heard that management was changing security staff rosters - trying to arrange it so they wouldn't need security people three days a week," Annie Owens, NSW LHMU Hotel Union Secretary said.

" Management had a plan - they were going to give themselves a bit more exercise. The bosses said they would get out from behind their desks and do the rounds.

" The management plan said the bosses would 'cover' for the licensed security guards when the hotel had rostered them off the job.

" LHMU members felt the exercise plan for the bosses might be OK, but the plan threatened the jobs, the working hours and the pay of security staff.

Compromise Safety and Security

" Our members also felt the management plan would also compromise safety and security in the workplace.

" This 5-star hotel is open for business 24 hours a day, alcohol is available for sale, the restaurants and the bars can get loud and boisterous - safety and security has to be a priority," Annie Owens said.

" A top quality hotel like the Wentworth Hotel - which can charge nearly $1000 a night for a room - sells peace of mind when it sells its rooms to well-heeled overseas tourists and business people.

" We believed the security and safety of hotel guests, as well as the workers, could be compromised by cutting back on the services of licensed security staff . If the guests don't feel secure they stop booking rooms - and that again effects our members' jobs."

Solidarity

Brett Edwards, the LHMU security delegate at the Wentworth Hotel, said his people were surprised and heartened at the way other hotel workers, and the union, quickly backed them in their cause.

" The rest of the hotel staff told us that the security workers would get their support. The union members wanted a win for the security staff.

" They wanted them to get back their regular hours, save their pay and their jobs - and deliver security for all the guests and all the workers, " Brett Edwards said.

" The management plan didn't factor in the workers' solidarity. In the face of this solidarity the management quickly backed down.

" The support that we got showed even those people who were not in the union what collective action can deliver," Brett said

Second Victory

This is the second time this year that the solidarity of Wentworth Hotel workers has saved jobs. Read

Wentworth Twenty restored to the roster

Annie Owens, the LHMU Hotel Union Secretary said she was sure the management plan never factored in that they might lose to the workers.

" But the fact that their plan lost has empowered the workers - and the win has meant more people taking out LHMU membership. Overnight a dozen more people signed up with the LHMU."

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  Issue 103 contents

Interview: Political Witch Hunt
CFMEU national secretary John Sutton on the mooted Royal Commission and what is really needed to clean up the building industry

E-Change: 1.3 The Nation State in Crisis
In the latest instalment in their study on the new politics, Peter Lewis and Michael Gadiel looks at the rise and fall of the institutional State.

Unions: Industrial Violence
Rowan Cahill agrees with Tony Abbott that thuggery and violence are part of Australian industrial relations landscape - but it's the bosses who do most of the bashing.

History: Total Recoil
Neal Towart looks at how Royal Commissions designed to kick unions have typically come back to haunt their architects.

International: Behind the Eight Ball
Jubilee Australia's Thea Ormond looks at the international activity being generated around this week's Group of Eight Summit in Genoa

Politics: Now We The People
A new group believes there is an alternative to corporate gobalism and economic rationalism

Satire: Marsden Now to Sue Himself
Sydney solicitor John Marsden is suing himself for defamation, claiming the recent libel case he brought did irreparable damage to his reputation.

Review: In The House
Resident Four-Eyes Mark Morey attempts the impossible with this attempt at a serious analysis of Big Brother.

» Survey Shows Majority Support for Unions

» Howard's Union Stooge in Hot Water

» Unions Cash in on Big Brother

» Big Boys Bully Over Della Compo Changes

» Where's WorkCover? Safety Prosecutions Drop Off

» Telstra's Ultimatum: Stay Away From Kim

» Workers Win Stake in New Bank

» Hours Test Case Gets Green Light

» St John of God Workers Pray for Justice

» Five-Star Action From Security Guards

» Howard Plans to Stop the Vote

» Rio Outrage Heads for Court

» Nurses To Fight For Pay

» One Hundred Reasons to Save Aussie Post

» Rail Track Sell-Off Part of Privatisation Push

» Coles Myer Abandons Regional Jobs

» Qld Wage Rise Still Not Enough

» Activists Notebook

» The Soapbox

» The Locker Room

» Trades Hall

» Tool Shed

» Problems with Hunter Decision

» A Lost Cause

» High Farce

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