
Issue No 33		01 October 1999

News

Unions Take Common Priorities to State Conference

Trade unions representing almost 900,000 NSW workers have released a paper of priority issues that they want the ALP State Conference to address this weekend.

A meeting of trade unions this week identified its priorities on key areas including a raft of industrial relations reforms which it says the government should introduce into Parliament as a matter of urgency.

These include forcing labour hire companies to pay employees the same rates and conditions as employees of the host company and giving the Industrial Relations Commission the power to set minimum rates for independent contractors.

It also calls on the government to allow workers to vote to charge a service fee for non-members who receive pay rises through the efforts of a trade union.

Other areas of agreement include:

- workers compensation reform with a firm position of no cuts to existing benefit levels.

- protection of worker entitlements - including the need for tougher legislation than that currently under consideration by the Howard Government.

- transmission on business and employment conditions - to ensure that recent court wins on contracting out flow through to NSW worker.

- competitive tendering in the NSW public sector - to ensure public sector workers have a reasonable opportunity to bid for contracts and that the social impact of such decisions are taken into account.

- support for a government wide review of social priorities (see lead story)

NSW Labor Council Michael Costa says the document represents unprecedented consensus within the trade union movement on critical policy issues.

"I hope that the document produced by the Labor Council provides delegates with a clear indication of the critical issues which the trade union would expect a Labor Government to address," Costa says.

The priorities document has been circulated to all affiliated unions and conference delegates.

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Issue 33 contents

Interview: The Boys
Labor Party heavyweights Eric Roozendaal and Damian O'Connor will lock horns this weekend. They fire their first shots.

Economics: Reasons to Be Cheerful
Can we change the way we look at the economy to better reflect community happiness and well-being?

Unions: Breaking the Wave
ACTU President's submission to the Senate Inquiry into the Workplace Relations Act.

International: The Wisdom of Solomon
A disturbing case from the Pacific where corporate lawyers are playing a deadly game.

History: Groundhog Day
Ghosts of Conferences past: some strangely familiar debates and decisions from previous state ALP conferences

Legal: Bad, Bad Things
Some of Australia's leading industrial lawyers argue that the Workplace Relations Act breaches basic international obligations.

Review: Tailing Out
As the BHP steelworks close in Newcastle a special book chronicles the stories of working live that have just become history.

Satire: Police Cut-Backs Lead To Drop In Organised Crime
An audit of the NSW Police has revealed that they have been seriously cutting back their operating budgets to ensure that they will be able to afford the increased security costs of the Olympics.

Work/Time/Life: It's Official: Aussies Work Harder
Australians continue to work long hours in contrast to a world-wide trend in industrialised countries that has seen hours at work remaining steady or declining in recent years.

» Station Cuts Derailed - But More Hits for the Scull

» Social Audit Backed by Community Groups

» Unions Take Common Priorities to State Conference

» Simmering Discontent Hits Boiling Point

» Public Sector Job Numbers Rubbery

» Timor Protest to be Dumped in Reith Wave

» Big Lunch Break for Stress-Free Day

» Arch Apologises for Youth Wage Debacle

» Clean Air Policy Up In Smoke

» Child Carers Stretched to the Limit

» Building Workers Won�t Settle for Half Pay

» Life, Art and Politics