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War On The Collective
While Saddam Hussein is the primary target of George W Bush�s ham-fisted crusade to destroy a noun, the United Nations is also under its heaviest attack in its 57 years.
Interview: Still Flying
Flight Attendant�s Association international secretary Johanna Brem looks at life in the air since last September�s terrorist attacks.
International: President Gas
NSW Firefighter�s president Darryl Snow sent this missive to his members on the anniversary of a day when 343 of their colleagues died in the line of duty.
Politics: Australia: A Rogue State?
ARM director Greg Barnes argues that September 11 has summoned a new era of isolationism and international lawlessness.
Unions: Welfare Max
Maximus Inc is big, American and controversial. Right now its knocking on the door of Australian welfare delivery and there is every chance the Howard Government will usher it inside, reports Jim Marr.
Bad Boss: Welcome to Telstra!
A Telstra call centre has joined the race for Bad Boss after sacking a pregant woman who had the audacity to need to use the toilet.
Health: Fat Albert: The Grim Reaper
Workers Online's cultural dietician Mark Morey chews the fat over this week's conference on child obesity
Satire: Iraq Pre-empts Pre-emptive Strike
Saddam Hussein has launched a pre-emptive strike on the United States to prevent it from pre-emptively striking Iraq first.
Poetry: A Man From the East And A Man From The West
Resident Bard David Peetz has penned this ode to the sacked Hilton hotel workers
Review: The Sum Of All Fears
Tara de Boehmler checks in to see that America�s cultural cringe is alive, well and sponsored by Marlboro cigarettes
Unions Join Anti-War Chorus
ACM Fails Port Hedland Report
Abbott Adds Fuel to Bias Case
Murray�s Millions Dwarfs Workers Wages
Rogue MP Faces Grassroots Backlash
Harry Bridges Speaks from the Grave
Councils Deny Multi-Lingual Workers
US Rabbi Fights Lowy Malls
Ansett Ticket Levy Not Reaching Workers
Something Stinks at the Zoo
Virgin in Delegate Situation
Pampas Workers Baste Boss
International Shame for Aussie IR
Sydney Trade Talks Face Backlash
Activists Notebook
Legends
Gough's Plaza
Labor's living legend challenged NSW Labor to lift its game as he attended a renaming of 2KY House to Gough Whitlam Plaza. The Locker Room
Support The System That Supports You
This system is a certainty, a moral, a good thing and a knocktaker; well, at least according to Phil Doyle Bosswatch
RIP Chainsaw Al
One of the heroes of corporate downsizing has been cut down but his memory lives on with golden handshakes for leaders of failed businesses still thick on the ground. Awards
The Importance of Being Ernie
It was the tenth annual �Ernie� Awards for sexist behaviour and Labor Council�s Alison Peters was amongst the noisy punters Week in review
Lest We Forget
You can�t help a sneaking suspicion, Jim Marr writes, that George Bush is conscripting the dead of September 11, 2001, to lead his push for another war in the Gulf�
Activists
Workers Out!
Gay and Lesbian trade unionists are organising an international conference to develop a global response to homophobia in the workplace, writes Ryan Heath
The Shame (Sham) of the Democratic Party
Weapons of Destruction
Tears From Tom
Good Hearts
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News
Councils Deny Multi-Lingual Workers
NSW local government councils face concerted action by workers who use foreign languages at work to have these skills recognised with higher wages.
The Municipal Employees Unions has launched the campaign continue to force councils to pay the Community Language Allowance to workers who use more than one language.
The MEU won the Allowance in 2000 but a recent audit of councils shows that many are still not paying the extra money to multi-lingual workers.
Launching a campaign to secure the payments this week, MEU General Secretary Brian Harris says "it's time the freeloading Council's acknowledged their responsibility to both the community and their workforce by paying the allowance."
"It is a disgrace that some councils believe it is acceptable to abuse staff with additional language skills in this way," Harris says.
"While some councils are proud to provide this service to their residents and value the contribution made by the staff who assist, there are those that continue to refuse to pay and it is these councils that we will be talking to - and taking to court if we have to."
The Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 requires councils to provide equal access to services to all residents, regardless of the language spoken.
MEU research shows that council workers across NSW are using their own language skills, therefore allowing councils to meet this vital service obligation. The language skills used are diverse and include over 30 languages ranging from Arabic to Tamil to Greek.
The councils that have been audited include Blacktown, Burwood, Botany Bay, Holroyd, Parramatta, Queanbeyan, Randwick, Ryde, Strathfield and Willoughby. A separate audit is also being conducted on the City of Sydney Enterprise Agreement provisions.
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Issue 154 contents
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