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Issue No. 320 18 August 2006  
E D I T O R I A L

Fixing the WorkChoices Mess
While the Rights at Work campaign has galvanised opposition to the Howard Government�s WorkChoices legislation, the debate about what sort of system should replace it is just hotting up.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: A Life And Death Matter
Macquarie Street and Canberra are squaring off over safety in the workplace, NSW Minister for Industrial relations, John Della Bosca, explains what's at stake.

Unions: Fighting Back
When John Howard's building industry enforcer started threatening people's homes, one couple hit the road. Jim Marr met them in Sydney.

Industrial: What Cowra Means
The ruling on the Cowra abattoir case highlights the implications of the new IR rules, according to John Howe and Jill Murray

Environment: Scrambling for Energy Security
Howard Government hypocrisy is showcased in its climate change manoeuvring, Stuart Rosewarne writes:

Politics: Page Turner
A new book leaves no doubt about whether the faction came before the ego, Nathan Brown writes.

Economics: The State of Labour
The capacity of the state to shape the political economy and thus improve the social lives of the people must be reasserted, argues Geoff Dow.

International: Workers Blood For Oil
A new book by Abdullah Muhsin and Alan Johnson lifts the lid on the bloody reality of US backed democracy for Iraq's trade unions

History: Liberty in Spain
Worker Self-Management is good management. The proof in Spain was in Catalania, Andalusia and continues in the Basque Country, as Neale Towart explains.

Review: Go Roys, Make A Noise
Phil Doyle thought he'd find nostalgia, but instead Vulgar Press' new book, Maroon & Blue is a penetrating insight into the suburban mind under stress.

N E W S

 Spin Bowls Fair Pay

 �Battler� Liberal on Safety

 Radio Rentals Launches Hit

 Under the Pump

 Privacy Goes East

 Which Bank Tossed Out of Court

 Mum Lashes Feds

 Sack Boss a Loser

 Let's Fly AWA

 Star City Bangs Wages Drum

 Prof Offers AWA Lesson

 Howard Stands By His Men

 Wife Miscarries After Attack

 Activist's What's On!

C O L U M N S

The Locker Room
Ruled Out
Phil Doyle plays by the rules

Fiction
Tommy's Apprentice
Chapter One - Tommy and "The Boy"

Politics
Westie Wing
Ian West wonders what might happen if the NSW Coalition actually did win power next March at the State elections.

L E T T E R S
 Love Me Slender
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News

Sack Boss a Loser


A multi-national media company failed to alert worker representatives to 90 Queensland redundancies because it lost the AMWU's phone number.

That was the excuse offered by Australian Provincial Newspapers print general manager, Garry Osborne, when he was tracked down by official, Danny Dougherty, last week.

"This is an international communications company and it can't fulfill its responsibilities to sacked staff because it has lost a phone number," Dougherty said.

"When I rang Osborne on his mobile he wanted to know why we were so agitated and said he couldn't alert us because he had lost our phone number."

APN, a division of Tony O'Reilly's Dublin-based Independent News and Media, canned the jobs of 30 Ipswich printers and 60 part time inserters, last week.

It will move printing of the city's Queensland Times newspaper to Sunshine Coast facilities and has indicated anyone who transfers will have to sign an AWA.

Dougherty said the Queensland Times had printed in Ipswich since 1867 and to dump the operation, without warning or discussion, was an insult to loyal locals.

"APN has taken millions of dollars out of Ipswich, in profits, but won't even talk about local jobs," he said.

It will cease its Ipswich printing operation in December.

Most of the 60 on-call inserters will receive no redundancy payments. Members of that section of the workforce, who have been with APN for five or more years, will get maximum payouts of $1000.

Dougherty said ANP's failure to notify the union breached commitments given to Queensland staff.

The AMWU has a hard copy of a company's power point presentation at which it undertakes to notify the union of job losses.

APN is Australasia's largest operator of regional newspapers and radio stations. It also has interests in pay tv and digital media.


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