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  Issue No 120 Official Organ of LaborNet 23 November 2001  

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News

ACTU Executive To Mark Union Bounce Back

By Noel Hester

Next week unions look to bounce back from the disappointment of the re-election of an anti-worker government when the ACTU Executive meets to formulate a positive agenda for the next year.

The Liberals may have conned their way to victory in the Federal election but there are some issues that are not going to melt away. Prominent on that list is the issue of worker entitlements. The Feltex dispute highlights the inadequacy of the Howard Government's quick and empty fix on this vital concern of workers.

Priorities at the ACTU exec will be the setting of the work program for next year with a focus on delegates education, improving the rights of casuals and improving protection of entitlements.

The ALP's defeat will also be on the agenda with the ACTU making its contribution to the debate by the wider labour movement as we find a way forward for labour politically.

This week ACTU Secretary Greg Combet pointed out that the relationship between unions and Labor has been defined more by the Coalition than by the labour movement.

'John Howard, as a student of the Menzies period, knows that the conservatives can dominate when the labour movement is divided. That is why he denigrates unions and ridicules Labor politicians with a union background. Labor has been defensive about the issue, whereas a positive approach is needed,' he said.

'Those in the labour movement who argue that the Labor-union relationship should be jettisoned altogether should consider the issues very carefully indeed. They should look to build on the strengths of the relationship, rather than condemn it for its weaknesses.'


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*   Issue 120 contents

In this issue
Features
*  Interview: Civilising Capital
Peter Butler is a global investor with a difference. He believes that environment, shareholder democracy and workers rights make good business sense.
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*  Industrial: All In The Family
In his opening submission to the landmark case, ACTU assistant secretary Richard Marles argues working hours are vital to life.
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*  Unions: Saving Cinderella
It is a modern day fairy tale - a Cinderella from the suburbs, worked like a slave from morning to night injured and then abandoned.
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*  International: Recognising China
Gough Whitlam draws the links, past and present, between recognition of China and the continuing struggle to achieve a genuinely inclusive Australian democracy.
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*  History: The Speakers Square
A new book lifts the lid on Melbourne's radical past - including the soapboxes that dotted the city in the 1890s.
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*  Economics: Back to the Pack
The big story in this year�s State of the States League Table is the end of the long reign of New South Wales at the top of the heap.
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*  Satire: Man Reneges On Promise To Leave The Country If Howard Re-Elected
A Sydney man has decided he won�t leave Australia despite the re-election of the Howard Government.
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*  Review: When Hippes Meet Unionists
A new book investigates how links between politics and culture reached a high point in the 1970s
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News
»  Calls for ALP Fundraising Code
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»  Mad Monk Keeps IR
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»  Ignored Warnings Bring Tragic Results
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»  ACTU Executive To Mark Union Bounce Back
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»  Workers Will Lose from Unfair Contract Changes
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»  Tassie On Top, While NSW And WA Slip
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»  Costa Gets First Union Call
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»  Hamberger in Hot Water
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»  Egan to Pay for Welfare Win
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»  Sweet Victory for Sugar Workers
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»  Selectron Demise Spells Death of Tech Inustry
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»  Telco Industry Growth Hits The Wall
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»  Shocking Conditions in Clothing Industry
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»  Workers Force Council Backdown
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»  New Dili Project Launched
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»  Airport Guards Welcome Work Study Case
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»  No News is Bad News for the Bush
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»  Getonboard Closes Doors
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»  Activists Notebook
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»  Organiser of the Year Nominations Open
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Columns
»  The Soapbox
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»  The Soapbox
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»  Trades Hall
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»  Tool Shed
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Letters to the editor
»  The Cost a Costa
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»  Unionism and the ALP - a Workers View.
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»  Is 60-40 Good Odds?
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»  Ancient OHS - The Wergild Sysstem
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