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Issue No. 134 | 03 May 2002 |
The Hijacking of May Day
Interview: Youth Group History: Back To The Future Industrial: On the Street Unions: The New Deal Legal: The Police State Road Women: What Women Want Politics: Street Party International: The Costs of War Review: Songs of Solidarity Satire: Bono Satisfies World Hunger for Preachy Rockstars Poetry: Woomera
Yarra Seamen Take Border Stand Kinkos Copies Anti-Union Script Nike Told to Shoosh on Sweatshops Rapper Wins Wobbly Anthem Prize Unions Target Labour Hire Bidding War Rally Targets Tight-Arse Costello Councils To Be Audited On Language Allowance Scope For Payback In Privacy Limitations Heavyweight Push For Medibank Private To Stay Public East Timor MPs Question Timor Gap Plan Artists' Union Bans Voice For Peace
The Soapbox The Locker Room Bosswatch Week in Review Tool Shed
M1 Open Letter Julian Online May Day Debacle Mothers Day Musings Greetings From Canada
Labor Council of NSW |
News Year Zero for Building Unions
All six trade unions with coverage in the NSW construction industry have signed an historic cooperation pact in the lead-up to industry wide wage negotiations later this year. The pact, coordinated by the NSW Labor Council, commits the unions to working together to build up union strength in the building and construction industries and lays down a process for resolving disputes between unions. It also explicitly rejects the influence of ALP factional politics within union affairs as grounds for non-cooperation on industrial matters. New Era Labor Council secretary John Robertson says that while unions need to remember their history, the time had come to look forward and ensure the movement's survival. "At times unions in this industry have been distracted by ideological differences," Robertson says. "This has clearly undermined our effectiveness as a trade union movement." "While building and construction is regarded as a union stronghold, the reality is we have less than 50 per cent of the industry unionised. Unless we look forward as one we will never grow as a movement." Robertson says the test of the pact will be the level of union membership. If successful, it would become a model for cooperation in other industries. Rank and File Support CFMEU delegate Rebel Hanlon endorsed the pact, saying workers did not care about what union they were in, just that they were in a union. Hanlon says the upcoming enterprise bargaining negotiations will be a golden opportunity for workers across the industry to join together and campaign for a better balance between work and family life, better safety and improved wages. The signatories to the pact are: the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, the Australian Workers, the Electrical Trades Union, the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, the Plumbing Division of the CEPU and the Transport Workers Union. The Labor Council will coordinate an historic mass meeting of delegates from all signatory unions to finalise their EBA claim in July.
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