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Issue No. 226 25 June 2004  
E D I T O R I A L

US Forces
The concerted and increasingly personal campaign by the Howard Government to portray Mark Latham as anti-American is built on some dodgy premises.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: The New Democrat
Canadian activist Judy Rebick explains how she's using lessons from Brazil to rebuild the labour movement.

Bad Boss: The Ugly Australian
Prime Minister John Howard is in California spruiking the "merits" of this month’s Bad Boss nomination …

Unions: Free Spirits and Slaves
International capital demands guest labour – legal or illegal – as a way of beating down wages and conditions and, as Jim Marr discovers, the Australian Government seems happy to oblige.

Industrial: National Focus
Noel Hester reports on another workplace death (we-will-not-RIP NOHSC), heartburn for the Canberra consensus and all the action from around the states in our national wrap.

History: A Class Act
The problem of forgetting the primacy of class in favour of other ideas of community is highlighted in a new book, writes Neale Towart

International: Across the Ditch
NZ Nurses Union leader, Laila Harré, is in Sydney this week, comparing notes with the Australian Nurses Federation and seeking transTasman support for New Zealand’s highest profile industrial campaign.

Economics: Home Truths
Sydney University's Frank Stilwell argues that tax policy is driving the housing boom.

Review: No Time Like Tomorrow
The Day After Tomorrow is one part Grim Reaper of the environmental movement and two parts fictitious fable dramatically window dressed with extreme special effects, writes Tara de Boehmler.

Poetry: Silent Note
Resident Bard David Peetz uncovers the current public service motto – "Don't tell the Minister!".

N E W S

 Hadgkiss Sinks Boot into Safety

 Put a Job in Your Trolley

 Della Puts Cleaners Through Schools

 Freespirit Severs "Slavery" Link

 Luna Fringe Targets Fun

 Labour Warriors Fall

 Canberra Six in Dock

 Lobbyists Look for ALP Spine

 Tree Plan Faces Axe

 Sydney Water to Drip Feed Public

 Safety Nosedives At JetStar

 Irritable Desks on March

 Howard Backs Union Model

 Activists What’s On!

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
The Pursuit of Happiness Part I
The Australia Institute's Clive Hamilton questions the assumptions underlying a society that defines happiness in dollar terms.

The Soapbox
The Pursuit of Happiness Part II
Clive Hamilton concludes his analysis, looking at how more and more Australians are pulling back from a marketplace that is no longer providing the goods.

The Locker Room
Sack ‘Em All!
Phil Doyle puts his job on the line, but doesn’t everyone these days?

Politics
The Westie Wing
The NSW Government has an agenda on the table but the test is finding innovative ways to finance it, writes Ian West

L E T T E R S
 Lest We Forget
WHAT YOU CAN DO
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Activists

Activists What’s On!


Fundraiser for the Cuban Children's Fund

Merdith Burgmann, President of the NSW Legislative Council will host a fundraising reception for the fund as follows:

Friday July 9th, 5.30 pm - 7 pm

At the President's Dining Room, Parliament House, Macquarie St, Sydney.

$30 donation, plus surprise raffles.

RSVP by 2nd July To Claudine Lyons

Ph 9230 2548

The special guest will be: Anthony Albanese, MHR (Shadow Minister for Employment Services and Training). Anthony was a member of the recent parliamentary delegation to Cuba. During the visit he was able to visit the Wm Soler Hospital, the focus of the Cuban Children's fund's efforts. Anthony will talk about the progress of the hospital and his observations of Cuba generally.

In recent months the Fund Committee has been able to assist the further development of the Wm Soler Hospital with donations that have enabled the purchase of intensive care beds for small children and paediatric anaesthetic equipment.

If you would like to join the fund please return this email and I will send you the necessary information.

The fund is assisted and administrated through APHEDA - Union Aid Abroad, the ACTU's aid and solidarity organisation.

Business Ethics Forum

- timely opportunity to discuss corporate values and responsibilities

The second Oxfam Community Aid Abroad Business Ethics Forum on Tuesday 13 July 2004 comes at a time when global events have again thrown a spotlight on the social responsibilities of the corporate sector. The forum will bring together representatives from many top Australian companies, government departments, educational institutions and the general public to discuss values and ethics in the workplace.

The forum will take place in Federation Square in the heart of Melbourne's CBD and will feature distinguished keynote speakers:

Justice Neville Owen (Royal Commissioner, HIH Inquiry)

Christine Charles (Corporate Executive, Newmont Australia)

Sharan Burrow (ACTU President)

Corporate governance matters such as boardroom responsibility and shareholder interest, the environmental impact of business and best corporate practice are some of the issues that will be the subject of conversations at the forum.

Andrew Hewett, Executive Director of Oxfam Community Aid Abroad, says a constructive business ethics debate in Australia is vital in this era of corporate globalisation. "Corporations today wield an unprecedented level of influence and power over human development. Current patterns of globalisation are creating opportunities for those with skills, education and assets. People who have these opportunities can make a positive contribution so that the three billion people surviving on less than $2 per day and the one in seven children who have no school to go to are not left behind."

DATE: Tuesday 13 July 2004, 6.30pm to 8.00pm

VENUE: BMW Edge Theatre, Federation Square,

Corner Flinders & Swanston Streets, Melbourne

COST: $75 per head

Drinks and canapés on arrival

For more information visit: www.oxfam.org.au/businessethics

strategic thinking and planning

An East coast opportunity to work on your campaign or organisation's strategic thinking and planning.

Would you like to be an activist who knows where their campaign is going? Do your current strategies and tactics match the broader social and political context? Would you like to be the kind of community worker who is clear about the aims of their project so that you can clearly evaluate what you are trying to achieve? Many environmental and social justice advocates are flying by the seat of their pants and looking for effective strategies to address the challenges we face. Sometimes we can get stuck in reactive modes, or feel overwhelmed by the challenges of the moment.

The good news is that there are skills and tools for helping us become more pro-active, and creative as an organisation. We can become smarter at strategy!

So would you like to build the skills base in your organisation? How to develop a plan? Strategic analysis? Are you merely being more reactive about your work? This workshop provides you with an opportunity to not only reflect, but to learn new skills in strategic thinking and planning to add to your activist tool kit.

Four seasoned trainers will be facilitating two days of active and experiential learning on strategic campaign analysis and planning.

Workshop goals:

Develop skills in understanding how organisations create smart strategies for change;

Learn new tools for campaign planning;

Increase your skills for accessing creativity and understanding your gifts for strategic thinking;

And apply these skills and tools to your organisation!

When &where:

Brisbane :: Thursday 29th & Friday 30th July :: Brisbane Powerhouse

Sydney :: Monday 2nd & Tuesday 3rd August :: Quakers Meeting House

Melbourne :: Thursday 5th & Friday 6th August :: The Green Building

How much: $220-550 > sliding scale [includes GST unfortunately]

Contact Amy for more details: [email protected]

Work Interrupted

The ACTU will be co-sponsoring a conference on casual and insecure employment in Melbourne on August 2, 2004.

This timely national conference will examine the impact of casual and insecure work on Australian workers, business and the economy.

Casual employment as a proportion of the total workforce has grown from 13% in 1982 to 28% in 2003. It is widespread in many new industries and occupations and is increasingly long-term. Most jobs created in the 1990s were part-time and casual.

This conference will look at:

* the personal experience of casual workers

* international comparisons with Australian casual employment

* the economic impact of casual employment

* policy challenges for legislators, business and unions

This conference brings together some of Australia's leading thinkers and commentators and policy makers from business, unions, academia, politics, and the media to further this important debate.

Union places at the conference will cost $150 per head. To reserve your place download and complete the registration form below and fax it to RMIT University/CASR on 02 9365 6067. Or email your details to [email protected]. Or post the registration form with payment to: Work Interrupted, PO Box 7267, Bondi Beach NSW 2026.

http://www.actu.asn.au/public/news/1087890291_19647.html

hoWARd the arseLIcKEr

-Written by D.B.Valentine - Directed by Mark Cleary

-The Edge Theatre - Cnr King & Bray Sts Newtown

-Advance previews Wed 4th & Thurs 5th August.

-Opening Friday 6th Aug to Sunday 29th Aug.

-Time: 7.30pm (tbc)

-Bookings 9645 1611 or www.mca-tix.com

-More info go to: www.newtowntheatre.com.au click on "The Edge"


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