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Issue No. 316 | 21 July 2006 |
Call Security
Interview: The Month Of Living Dangerously Unions: Staying Mum Economics: Precious Metals Industrial: The Cold 100 History: The Vinegar Hill Mob Legal: Free Agents Politics: Under The Influence International: How Swede It Was Review: Keating's Men Slam Dance on Howard
Hendification Blurs WorkChoices ll Visa Rorts Minister Urged to Quit James Hardie Joins AWA Crusade
The Soapbox Politics The Locker Room
Sick of Ants Swimming Uphill Praise from Belly
Labor Council of NSW |
News Howard Pinches Pay
The meeting, held in the workers' lunchtime, went longer than anticipated and Austral Bricks responded by docking the union members four hours' pay, in accordance with the Federal Government's new industrial relations legislation. CFMEU national secretary Martin Kingham presented workers with cheques at the Craigieburn plant. "They went out at about midday and came back about one," says Stephen Roach from the Brick Tile and Pottery Division of the CFMEU. "Because the company didn't like what Kingham had to say about them using a contractor who uses foreign labour on the construction site, they've decided to sock the blokes four hours pay through the government's Act. Roach explained that the CFMEU used money from a hardship fund to ensure the workers were not out of pocket. "When companies abuse this legislation, even though we don't support it, we are not going to sit back and allow them to rob their workers and set themselves up as judge jury and executioner." The workers held a stopwork meeting earlier this month after the brick manufacturer awarded a contract to build a new kiln to French company Ceric. Ceric is using 11 workers from the Czech Republic, employed through the Hungarian consultancy company, Fornax. CFMEU workers at the site held a meeting to discuss concerns that the Czech workers were being misused, when security guards brought in by Ceric stopped communication between Austral employees and the imported labourers. "The Australian workers at Austral bricks wanted to know what pay and conditions these poor blokes have and why have they been employed when local businesses who employ Australian workers also tendered for the contract," says Kingham. Mr Kingham said it was outrageous the Austral workers had been punished for the meeting because of Prime Minister John Howard's Work Choices legislation.
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