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  Issue No 59 Official Organ of LaborNet 23 June 2000  

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News

Unions to Get Equity in New Computer Deal


Individual affiliates that promote the 'Get on Board' computer deal will receive equity in the company in return for their participation, Labor Council secretary Michael Costa said today.

After launching the $9.95 computer-internet package this week, Costa said that both the Labor Council and the NSW Alp - which control 33 per cent of the company each - would earmark a proportion of their stake for individual affiliates.

Costa also vowed that the Labor Council's proceeds from the venture would be ploughed back into information technology development.

The large equity stake in the new venture, is a key distinguishing feature from Virtual Communities, where the only trade union equity has been purchased. In all, it is estimated that less than five per cent of the company - which is valued by the market at more than $360 million - is in union hands.

Costa says the company, in which the union movement will share a one third stake with the ALP and leading financial services provider Kingsway Capital, had the potential to be every bit as valuable as its broadcast media asset, radio station 2KY.

"As the new economy develops, organizations that develop and consolidate their membership networks will have a huge advantage and a sound footing to deal with the challenging times ahead," Costa says.

"This deal provides the Labor Council with significant equity in recognition of the important asset we bring to the venture - our network of union members."

Costa says the offer of weekly computer for $9.95 per week sets a new benchmark in accessibility for working people who, until now, have been locked out of the information revolution by the high entry costs.


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In this issue
Features
*  Interview: Holding the Line
Diwan Shankar, Assistant National Secretary of the Fiji TUC, is in Australia to consolidate support for his members and plead for ongoing bans.
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*  Technology: D-Day for VC?
NSW Labor Council secretary Michael Costa explains the motivations behind the new Get on Board computer-internet venture.
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*  Legal: Knock, Knock - Who's There?
When the nine year old son of CFMEU construction division state secretary Andrew Ferguson recently responded to a Saturday door knock, it was neither a friend nor a Jehovah's Witness.
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*  Unions: Are You a Good Listener ?
Mark Hearn goes inside the Energy Australia call centre to find a workplace where there is a code for evrything - even trips to the toilet.
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*  International: Union Observers Barred from Zimbabwe Poll
Five observers from the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) and 19 other South Africans aligned to Zimbabwe's Catholic Commission for Peace and Justice are among 233 observers barred by the Zimbabwean government from monitoring the parliamentary elections.
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*  History: Community, Class, and Comparison
Despite its occasional romantic tendencies, new labour scholarship is mapping collective action within working class communities.
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*  Satire: Rural Poor Return to Labor
Thrilled by the great new branding, the new Country Labor party has caused scenes of great rejoicing in the country.
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*  Review: The Wicked Webs We Weave
LaborNet web-meastro Paul Howes trawls the web for some hot sites for all you political junkies.
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News
»  STOP PRESS: Get on Board Moves Virtual
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»  Orange at Risk - Call for City's Help
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»  Unions to Get Equity in New Computer Deal
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»  Aussie Competition Laws Protect Fijian Terrorists
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»  Union Rat Sinks Industrial Laws
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»  Olympic Rail Deal Struck for Games Period
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»  GST Fears for Union Delegates
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»  No Cigars for Casino High Rollers
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»  Frustration Boils Over Olympics Blowout
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»  Support for Campaign Against TAFE Cuts
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»  Private Sector Health Workers Seek Pay Equity
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»  Bosses Hoist on Own Petard
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»  Construction Industry Assists East Timor Training
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»  AFL-CIO Leader to Address Congress
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»  Full ACTU Congress Coverage on LaborNet
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Columns
»  The Soapbox
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»  The Locker Room
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»  Trades Hall
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»  Tool Shed
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Letters to the editor
»  Freudian Slip
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»  Volunteers in Policing
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»  Tax Farce
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