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Issue No. 160 08 November 2002  
 
F E A T U R E S

Interview: Life After Keating
Labor's foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd looks at the world and wonders what might have been ...

Industrial: That Friday Feeling
Anthony Stavropoulos has been working six days a week for the last eight years and now he wants his weekends back. �Remember that Friday feeling?� he asks. �You just don�t get that anymore.�

Bad Boss: Begging to Work
They may put themselves about as the Saints of the Fourth Estate, but bosses at the Big Issue Magazine have been nominated by their own vendors for this month�s Tony award.

Organising: Project Pilbara
Sydney University�s Bradon Ellem reports on how unions are bouncing back in Rio territory

Unions: Off the Rails
The Federal Government is attempting to turn NSW Railways into a political football with a proposal that threatens the safety of freight and passenger trains in NSW and life in our rail Towns, writes Phil Doyle.

International: Brazil Turns Left
Union stalwarts throughout the American hemisphere are cheering the election of Lula � the peanut seller and shoeshine boy, turned union leader - who has been elected as the first working-class President of Brazil.

Environment: Brown Wash
Stuart Rosewarn argues the Johannesburg Sunmmit was a gripping showcase of Australia�s lack of a strategic vision.

History Special: Learning from the Past
Ray Markey looks at union membership growth in the 1880s & 1900s to argue that today�s unions must engage to grow.

Corporate: Will the Bullying Backfire?
Job insecurity, unemployment, a growing gap between rich and poor, massive global poverty and environmental danger are the big issues for the protests at the World Trade Organisation meeting in Sydney.

Technology: Danger Lurks For The Passive
If unions fail to exploit opportunities on the web to gain members, other organisations are likely to fill the void and provide services to workers on the internet.

History: In Labour�s Image
Neale Towart looks at a long-overdue initiative to around NSW through the eyes of the workers.

Politics: Without Power Or Glory
South Coast contributor Rowan Cahill gives his take on the Cunningham by-election result.

History Special: A 'Cosy Relationship'
Barbara Webster looks at Rockhampton between 1916 � 1957 to debunk the �dependence� theory of trade union growth.

Culture: Blood Stains the Wattle
Former Queensland Treasurer Keith De Lacey has turned up in print with a rollicking tale of life during the famous Mt Isa strike of the 60s.

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: The Executive Pay Cut
Executives accepting pay freezes, or even pay cuts? This outrageous proposal has been put on the table by some capitalists themselves, and taken up by our bard.

Review: Time Out
When a family man invents a new life after losing his steady job, Tara de Boehmler watches his charade escalate until there is no turning back.

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L A T E S T   N E W S

African Immigration Scam Widens
CFMEU lawyers are in Johannesburg tracking down an injured worker spirited out of Wagga Wagga Hospital as evidence of wholesale immigration rorts, involving young South Africans, seeps out of the North Queensland cotton belt.

Solicitor Lachlan Riches was hoping to interview Oagiles Malothane in South Africa today as the CFMEU sought to mount wage and immigration cases on his behalf. [full story]

Unions in New Economy Breakthrough
Twenty telecommunication and IT companies are parties to a breakthrough award which will deliver minimum wages and conditions to 10,000 Australians, previously outside formal industrial coverage.

The success by the CPSU and CEPU capped a two-year campaign, sparked by the One.Tel collapse that left hundreds of stranded workers dependent on minimum community standards. [full story]

Water Workers Told to Stay Home
Workers employed by Murray Irrigation have been asked to stay home one day each week because there is not enough water to keep the company operating at the same pace.

The Riverina Irrigation Company, which employs 125 workers, is the latest in a growing number of companies being forced to wind down operations because of the ongoing drought in NSW. [full story]

Rural Campaign Against Rail Carve-Up
Workers in rail towns across NSW are fighting plans by the Howard Government to take over the state�s rural rail track and contract out maintenance at the expense of jobs and public safety.

They have called on NSW Premier Bob Carr to reject outright overtures by Canberra to take control of mainline tracks and open them up to competitive tendering. [full story]

Seven's Deadly Sin: Email Access Denied
Pay negotiations at Channel Seven have turned nasty with the network blocking union email access in a bid to stymie debate on the deal.

The virtual blockade, with MEAA emails to members being returned 'undeliverable', is the latest salvo in Seven's bid to force staff to accept a pay deal that does not even keep pace with inflation. [full story]

Vic Election: It�s Bracks �v- Jeff junior
Fears of a return to Kennett era divisiveness have prompted the Victorian Trades Hall Council to urge members to back the return of Steve Bracks� Labor Government in the upcoming state poll.

VTHC secretary Leigh Hubbard urged workers and their families to remember the damage wrought by Jeff Kennett�s administration which was only voted out of office three years ago. [full story]

ALSO MAKING NEWS

 Aboriginal Health Workers Denied Minimum Wage

 Zookeepers Settle But Pay Stink Continues

 Nurses Gear Up for Aged Care Action

 Stoppage Over Rubbish Protection

 Nurses Care For Themselves Too

 New Roster Undermines WA Prison Security

 Strike Rocks Israel

 ICFTU: Japan No Workers� Paradise

 STOP PRESS: Libs Plan $70m Arts Heist

 Activist Notebook

email workers to a friend latest breaking news from labornet
"It�s high time that the Nationals start looking after their constituencies and help out the silent victims of this drought� - AWU NSW secretary Russ Collison

E D I T O R I A L
Governments of all levels need to look beyond the clich�s of drought to chart its full impact on rural communities.

The Great Pretender

C O L U M N S

Month In Review
War and Pieces of Work
The Bali Tragedy dominated the news this month, leaving many questioning the motive and wondering if this is fallout from Australia�s unquestioning support of George Dubya�s �War On Terror�.

The Soapbox
Beware of Greeks Bearing Historical Allusions
Roland Stephens argues that the current popular line that the USA is a modern day version of the Roman Empire is flawed.

The Locker Room
Over The Fence Is Out
Phil Doyle warms up for another season of hard hitting and fast bowling in the park, making the rules up as he goes along.

Indigenous
The Sea of Hands
Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation are five years old. Spokeswoman Dameeli Coates addressed labor Council to mark the event.

Postcard
Tokyo Youth Call
Tokyo unions are relying on young organisers to infiltrate workplaces as part of a major organising campaign, which focuses on non-unionised companies, reports Mary Yaager.

Bosswatch
Still Crazy After All These Years
With new research suggests CEO carry similar personality traits to psycho-paths, the AGM season is proving that there�s little room for logic in our nation�s board rooms.


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