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Issue No. 151 | 06 September 2002 |
Looking for the Light
Interview: Packing a Punch Bad Boss: Basher Takes Back Passage Unions: Five Star Shafting Economics: TINA � Rest In Peace International: Against Bush's "War on Terrorism" Environment: Saving the World History: A Radical Scribe Poetry: With A Little Help From My Friend Satire: Colonel Gaddafi Promotes Himself to General Review: Workplace Dictatorship
Cole Comfort: I�m Not Biased Grassroots Drives Safety Campaign Deloittes Curry Favour on Sub-Continent Rail Workers Buck Individual Contract Wage Bribe Bush Regenerators Weed Out Dodgy Deal Hairdresser Wins Fight For Wage Justice Cabin Crews Argue for �Safety in Numbers� �Slave Labour� In Insurance Industry Beattie Plods into Risky Territory
The Soapbox The Locker Room Week in Review Bosswatch Women
Charity Begins At Home
Labor Council of NSW |
News Ansett Workers Short-Changed
The ACTU has revealed the Federal Government�s eight week cap on redundancy payments has seen ex-Ansett staff short-changed by an average $25,000 a head. Meanwhile, it continues to slug travellers $10 a ticket on the pretext, according to section seven of its Air Passenger Ticket Levy Collection Tax, of meeting "the cost of payments by the Commonwealth under the Special Employee Entitlements Scheme for Ansett group employees". The Howard Government is blocking full payment of worker entitlements by clawing back $300 million from company administrators before outstanding entitlements are paid. The news follows this week's confirmation that former Ansett chief executive Gary Toomey received a $3.5 million payout after the airline was placed in administration last September. "The government is blocking the full payment of outstanding entitlements to former Ansett workers and misleading the travelling public, who are paying an estimated $10 million a month in air ticket levies for Ansett staff," ACTU president Sharan Burrow said. Ms Burrow said most former Ansett employees were struggling financially. On average, they had been owed 42 weeks in redundancy payments, but Government's cap had carved 34 weeks out of that entitlement. Meanwhile, the Air New Zealand annual report reveals that just months before its subsidiary crashed, executives were awarded options over 6.5 million shares. This came on top of $24.7 million in reported payouts to senior staff, including the Toomey golden handshake. Shortly after the collapse, in the face of public anger, cabinet ministers Peter Costello and John Anderson, flagged legal action against those responsible for the failure. This year ASIC closed the book on the Ansett sage without launching a single prosecution. Under Howard's law, it seems, the only ones to be penalised will be the short-changed workers.
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