
Issue No 108		24 August 2001

LaborNET	Ask Neale	Tool of the Week

News

No Wonder Wonderland Workers Unhappy

Cleaners at Sydney's big theme park, Wonderland, are holding their first ever stoppage this Sunday to demand they all be treated equally.

The LHMU Cleaning Union members will stand outside the main gate on Sunday handing out balloons and stickers to tell patrons that Wonderland is not so wonderful to its employees.

" We want Wonderland to give cleaners a fair go. At the moment they are paying their older employees $14.08 an hour and the newer employees $15.61 an hour even though we're all doing the same work," Grace Micalleff, the LHMU Cleaners Union Wonderland delegate said.

Wonderland, set upon 219 hectares of parkland in Eastern Creek, is the largest theme park in the southern hemisphere.

Wonderland's majority owner is a Malaysian company who operate another theme park near Kuala Lumpur.

" The people of western Sydney will back our cause.

" We're asking the 7000 people who come through the gates on Sunday to fly our balloons - saying 'I support the Cleaners' - to show the boss they back the union and the workers.

Boss Won't Listen

" For six months we've been asking the company to pay all 21 cleaners at the same, higher, rate but for six months they have ignored our pleas.

" At first they tried to say the new cleaners were doing a different job from the older cleaners - but we have had a number of meetings with the boss and time after time we've got the evidence to show that their claims are just not right.

" They tried to employ cleaners at the lower rate but found that no one would accept the job - they were forced to advertise the jobs at a higher rate.

" We are now in the situation that 9 cleaners get paid at the $15.61 an hour higher rate and the 12 cleaners who have been working at Wonderland for a longer period are being paid $14.08 an hour.

" We all believe we should be earning the same money," Grace Micalleff said.

Show Your Support

LHMU members and supporters, who can't make it to the Front Gate of Wonderland on Sunday are being asked to back the Wonderland workers - even through their computers.

Members and supporters can tell Wonderland's Front Desk now that they back the cleaners' cause.

E-mail: [email protected]

Don't forget to send a copy of the e-mail to the LHMU organiser for Wonderland, Steve Klaassen.

E-mail: [email protected]

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  Issue 108 contents

Interview: The Man from Manusafe
Manusafe chief Andrew Whiley explains why employers have nothing to fear from the entitlements trust fund.

E-Change: 2.4 The Skeptic�s Response
In this round-table discussion, Noel Hester leads the charge against the argument that globalisation and change are inevitable.

Politics: No Hand Idle
Whitlam Institute director Peter Botsman finds much to agree with in John Howard's social coalition for welfare delivery.

Unions: Slavery and Struggle
A battle with all the elements of the infamous waterfront dispute is being played out in Charleston, South Carolina:

International: Postcard from Santiago
The CFMEU's Phil Davey meets up with Communist Party cadres in Chile who led the underground resistance to Pinochet.

History: Race and Australian Labour.
Australian unionists have long been questioning notions of a �White Australia�, even before the colonies united with it as the central feature.

Economics: Global Regulation
Public sector unions from around the globe are taking the first steps to work internationally against the deregulation agenda.

Satire: Niche Identified in Left-Wing Publications Market
A marxist-feminist activist has discovered a gaping hole in the lucrative left-wing publications market.

Review: The Fight for Equal Pay
In this extract from her new book, Zelda D'Aprano looks at the contribution Kath Williams made to the struggle for equality.

» Entitlements Just Tip of the Iceberg

» State-Wide Push for Entitlement Protection

» Support Builds for Industrial Manslaughter Laws

» Organiser Assaulted � Police Called In

» Young Casuals Not Paid Overtime

» Commonwealth Hit With Criminal Conviction

» Back Door Bob Does Wollongong

» ABC IR Memo Draws More Fire

» Unions Warn of More Deaths in Construction

» Big Brother Hits Rail Workers

» Libs Dodge Public Education Forum

» Westfield Squeezes The Extra Dollar

» MP's Staffers Fume Over Pay Deal

» Mat Leave Win for Country Energy

» No Wonder Wonderland Workers Unhappy

» Qld's First Major Review of Awards

» Unions Buck Online Ambush

» Bras Burned for Burma

» Two Capps To Cancel Debt

» Australians Work Too Much, Too Long

» Activists Notebook