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A Call to Action
While there has been a lot of angst, anger and no shortage of tub-thumping over Simon Crean's push to cut union influence in the ALP, the end result of the Hawke-Wran review is that it is a call to action for unions to reclaim their party.
Interview: Save Our Souls
Labor's superannuation spokesman Nick Sherry expands on his recent discussion paper into the industry.
Unions: Rats With Wings
As the Cole Commission continues to sidestep safety, another Sydney building accident puts workers at risk this week, Jim Marr reports
Bad Boss: If The Boot Fits
Royal Commission favourite and S & B Industries top dog, Barbara Strong, carts off this week’s Bad Boss nomination.
History: Political Bower Birds
Rowan Cahill looks at a new resource detailing the fading history of the Communist Party of Australia
International: No More Business as Usual
Global unions are stepping up their campaign against corporate rip-offs
Corporate: The Seven Deadly Sins of Capitalism
Shann Turnbull outlines a new set of rules that should govern capital in the post-Enron environment
Industrial: Stiffed!
A backyard horror story has left funeral workers worrying about mooted changes to industry regulations, Jim Marr reports
Review: Prepare To Bend
If it’s a feel good flick that you want, Bend It Like Beckham is sure to satisfy on every level, writes Tara de Boehmler
Satire: Bush Boosts Sharemarket Confidence: Shares his Cocaine Stash
President Bush has rushed to re-establish confidence in the US market by distributing cocaine from his own Presidential stash to Wall Street.
 Mainstream Media Vacates IR
Ten Click Walker 'Unfit for Work'
Unions Push for Baby Nest
Casino Workers Overtime Jackpot
Abbott’s Task Force “Rank Hypocrisy”
Shipping Policy Blamed for Reef Damage
Dropping The Ball On Training
Combet Pushes Consultative Vehicle
Maternity Leave for Pacific Workers
Hit List of Forced Closures
Magistrate Endorses Health and Safety Rights
Contracts a Thorn in Workers' Side
Fringe Success for Workers’ Pick
Activists Notebook
Competitions
Workers on Film
Last issue we asked you for your ideas on a union film script to match Ken Loach's The Navigators. Here are the best responses. The Soapbox
Driving Together
ACTU Secretary Greg Combet argues that the Australian car industry needs a partnership between business and labour. The Locker Room
Dogs And Underdogs
Phil Doyle explains why losers are half the equation in each and every sporting contest Week in Review
Filfthy Rich and Claptrap
While Labor and the Democrats are tearing themselves to shreds, Little Lachie and Rich Ray address the main game … Bosswatch
Muddy Waters
It was a week when the Prime Minister washed his hands despite mounting evidence that the corporate world is out of control.
Fraser No Workers' Hero
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News
Combet Pushes Consultative Vehicle
The ACTU has proposed a new high-level Consultative Council of senior employer and union representatives to improve stability in the car industry.
ACTU Secretary Greg Combet has urged car industry employers to support the establishment of the Vehicle Industry Consultative Council to deal with industry-wide issues and to help resolve industrial disputes quickly.
Combet told a Federation of Automotive Products Manufacturers' dinner in Melbourne last night that the Federal Government's proposed legislation to cut workers' bargaining rights would destabilise the industry and inhibit the development of a co-operative approach to change.
And he accused the Government of politically motivated blackmail in threatening the industry with tariff cuts unless it adopted an anti-employee agenda.
He said Workplace Relations Minister Tony Abbott was talking down the industry and talking up disputes in order to pressure the Senate to pass the so-called Genuine Bargaining Bill, Secret Ballots Bill and Remedies for Unprotected Action Bill.
"Tony Abbott's out-dated, class war hysteria is a threat to investment and jobs, and is damaging our export potential. Despite record improvements in productivity and industrial dispute levels at historic lows, Mr Abbott is using the vehicle industry as a political plaything.
"Employers and employees can rise above the Government's confrontational agenda to find common ground in resolving the challenges confronting the industry.
The Consultative Council would provide a forum for constructive dialogue and leadership to deal with industry problems and issues such as safeguarding employee entitlements and improving skills and training," Combet says.
The Workplace Relations Act administered by Mr Abbott encourages the establishment of Industry Consultative Councils. A senior member of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission would chair the proposed Vehicle Industry Council.
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Issue 147 contents
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