E D I T O R I A L

Please Explain
It may become the defining irony of the Howard Era that a government that rode to power on the skirt of One Nation and hung there on the bridge of the Tampa is now opening our borders to hordes of low paid guest workers.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: Court's in Session
As the silks line up to challenge WorkChoices, Jeff Shaw is fighting for his own legacy - the NSW IR system.

Industrial: Whose Choices?
The Howard Government's WorkChoices legislation has been dissected by lawyers and the commentariat; now it's the turn of political economists.

Politics: Peter's Principles
Forget John Howard. The force behind WorkChoices is Peter Costello. The Prime Minister-in-waiting has devoted a lifetime to undermining the security and living standards of Australian families, Jim Marr reports.

Environment: TINA or Greener?
What does the greenhouse effect and legislation to control workers have in common, asks Neale Towart

History: Its Not Just Handshakes and Aprons
Power. They have it, we want it. Friendly societies tried to keep it for working people, writes Neale Towart

International: US Locks out Jose' Bove
The US Government has refused to allow France's most famous farmer Jose Bove into the country to address a conference

Education: No AWA - No Job
The Howard Government has given the Australian community its first view of the future by forcing new staff at Ballarat University to sign an Australian Workplace Agreement if they want a job, writes Jenny Macklin.

Culture: Jesus was a Long-Grass Man
The writings of a Middle Eastern theologian may provide guidance to those grappling with indigenous issues, writes Graham Ring

Review: Charlie the Serf
Nathan Brown takes the sledgehammer (and sickle) to Mr Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

N E W S

Local Jockey Odds Shorten

Conscience II - RU4 Aussie Jobs?

Online Porkies Spark Class Action

Captain Cook Discovers WorkChoices

Skippy's Escape Breaks Law

PM's Pay Day

STOP PRESS - 262 Day Strike Set To Finish

Strike Sticks it to Glue Boss

Fair Pay Chief Wages War

Millionaires Score Tax Break

Memo Costa: Remember Your Roots

Gate Crashing Gourmet

Australia Mum On Basic Rights

Filipinos Pay for Packed House

Son of Wal-Mart Pinged $2M

Trust Me, I�m a Unionist

Activist's Whats On!

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
Hitler in Bowral
Political censorship has made its wasy to the sleepy Southern Highlands, wrties Rowan Cahill.

The Locker Room
No Laughing Matter
Phil Doyle tries to take Australian sportspeople seriously, and fails.

Parliament
The Westie Wing
Ian West is mistakenly sent an advance copy of John Winston Howard�s Little Blue Book of Australian History�

L E T T E R S

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Please Explain

The current outbreak of stories about the importation of low paid foreign workers, be they Croat car makers, Vietnamese bakers or Japanese jockeys are no coincidence; they are the product of a conscious government policy justified by the ubiquitous 'skills crisis'.

This wave is about to gain further momentum: further loosening of visa requirements are set to be approved by the Federal Parliament, while the PM and (sadly) Labor Premiers last week signed off on a regime that will offshore skills accreditation, a potentially fatal wound to our trade apprentice regime.

The whole story illustrates the vicious cycle that emerges when one hands the national interest over to big business.

First the training of young Australians is halted as the public sector is privatised; the new corporations floated and the investment in young workers for the future deemed unviable in the short-term business model that defines economic success.

Then big business cries 'crisis' - they can not be expected to train young workers - that's the role of the government's who sold them the asset; and anyway there are far too many 'rigidities' in our training regime.

So the clamour begins to grow for 'freeing up' immigration; address the 'crisis' by scouring the globe for workers from societies with a lower standard off living, who are so desperate for economic security that they will travel around the world for a better paying job.

And then the final gambit; destroy the award system and hack at the minimum wage so that these new workers, to fill the jobs that Australians are no longer trained to do, need not cost as much as the local workforce.

These are arguments that the union movement and, hopefully, the ALP will prosecute vigorously, although with more thought, compassion and nuance than the Hanson juggernaut.

There are dangers, none the least that these questions of economic rationalism are side-tracked into a cheap form of economic nationalism, one step away from the racism that trivialised the quite reasonable request Pauline posed in the mid-90s. Please explain. Please explain because we can't understand; what's the logic behind this? Who wins? Who loses? What's the game plan?

To avoid this, today's debate around guest workers and skilled migration should be premised on the following three principles.

First, no individual is to blame for leaving their home and family in order to get a better life; indeed there is much to be admired in the sacrifice involved in moving to an unknown land, often alone, without the security of citizenship.

Second, this is not a debate about 'protection' of privilege - it is about respecting the working rights that have been fought for by our forebears and being curious about the interests of those who would tear them up and flush them down the toilet.

Third, the end game has to be Australia's long term national interest; and that means the opportunities we are creating for the next generation; who need to aspire to more than a spot on a reality TV show in a country that has more going for it than a resources dump for China.

If we off-shore our apprenticeships, undercut our lowest paid and outsource our national soul to the lowest global bidder are we building a stronger economy or letting the white ants loose?

Yes, the debate is a delicate one and the dangers of isolationism and xenophobia must always be in our consideration; but if we do not resolve these issues now, within the framework laid out above, I fear the demons the PM has so skilfully brewed and then uncorked in the past will be at his disposal again.

Peter Lewis

Editor

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Last Modified: 17 Feb 2006