
Issue No 12		07 May 1999

News

It’s Rio Telstra -- Union Braces for Attack

Telstra has been accused of using Rio Tinto-style tactics to undermine unions fuelled by the new powers in Peter Reith's Workplace Relations Act.

CEPU officials point to the central role two former Rio Tinto (CRA) executives are playing in discouraging unions and promoting a direct employer-employee relationship.

They say Rob Cartwright, described by Reith as one of the 'A' team of industrial change in Australia, and Justin O'Connell have played central roles in formulating industrial policy since they moved from the mining giant.

In recent times the union has been angered by a stream of provocative acts which make its jobs harder, including:

- limiting union officials' right of entry to meal breaks

- pursuing unions through the Federal Court when they take protected industrial action

- cutting out union delegate meetings entirely, so there is no longer tripartite consultation

- trying to create a climate where people are scared to use award entitlements

- not following dispute resolution processes in the award which require consultaiton with the union.

"The climate in Telstra is very much a siege mentality when it comes to unions -- they've tried to cut off any contact and prevent contact with the union," CEPU (Postal and Telecommunications Division) organiser Eddie Husic told Workers Online.

Ironically, Husic says this attitude is emphasing the needs for unions in the workplace. "members are seeing what happens when the union is cut out of the process and they don't like it."

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Issue 12 contents

Interview: The Call of the Wild
We meet a union organiser who’s taking the union message into the call centres.

Unions: After the Gold Rush
Call centres are the boom industry and governments everywhere are touting them as major job creators - particularly in regional areas.

History: From Steam Trains to Information Superhighways
A new project is dedicated to promoting the heritage of the Eveleigh railway workshops.

Work/Time/Life: This Working Life: Issue #1
The debut issue of the ACTU's new monthly bulletin for it's Working Time and Employment Security Campaign.

International: British Unions Halt Membership Decline
Union membership has stopped falling in the UK for the first time in 18 years, suggesting that unions’ increased committment to recruitment and organising is starting to pay off.

Review: Cold Warriors' Secrets Exposed
NSW Attorney General Jeff Shaw looks at two books that lift the lid on Cold War espionage.

» Push for Decent Call Centres

» Shaw Unveils Second Wave

» Union Raises the Roof for Beryl

» Cotter Withdraws Currawong Standover Claims

» Reith Second Wave Will Prolong Industrial Disputes

» It’s Rio Telstra -- Union Braces for Attack

» Fears of AWA Push in State Rail

» Age Tele-Centre Seeks Pay Equity

» Advocate Ads to be Referred to Auditor-General, ACCC

» Labor Council to Stage Pre-Drug Summit