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| Issue No 87 |  |
10 March 2001 |
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Letters to the EditorViva La Shane!
I've just spent the last week trying to find my yacht without success. It seems it was moored at Currawong .I didn't know that I owned a yacht until I read workers in Workers on Line report in the Toolshed 23 February. I've also had trouble finding my way home as I read that I'm either an inner city trendy or a Pittwater elite. After stumbling about Newtown and Palm Beach looking for Blaxcell Street I reluctantly caught the train and bus back to Granville. It appears that the old journalist adage of never letting the truth getting in the way of a good story can be applied to WOL in a manner that would make Piers Ackerman proud. I am a supporter of Currawong. I've been an elected union official, an organiser, an industrial officer, a delegate and a rank and file member for more than 20 years. I was educated in Sydney's western suburbs (Liverpool), have lived in either the west or in Newcastle for the same period and find it offensive that the elite of Labour Council can use the tactics of lies and intimidation to silence workers who dare to criticise. A perusal of the postcodes of our leading union officials will no doubt reveal that less than 3% reside in the west. In fact, I doubt that any live outside the inner city the Eastern or Northern suburbs. The character assassination of Shane Worthington is shameful and cowardly. It would be news to Shane and the Currawong supporters that he is the leader of the movement. There is no leader. The supporters are made up of rank and file unionists from a range of Unions including the Teachers, CPSU, CFMEU , LHMU, PSA , MEAA etc. and includes amongst it's supporters Jack Mundey, Tom Uren, Jim Macken, Barry Cotter et al. Line them up in the toolshed too! It's a sad time for workers when the target for the tool of the week is a rank and file unionist who had the temerity with other unionists to disagree with the direction and deception of a peak body which by any definition has become is elitist and irrelevant to the vast number of rank and file members. If there is to be a reasoned debate on the future of Currawong then let Labour council reveal the details of the constantly changing plan, and if the need for Trade Union training is as vital and urgent as it has been stated then use the proceeds from the sale of 2KY to fund an appropriate home. Brian Forbes
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   Interview: Working WomanCheryl Kernot on women in the workplace, Labor's male culture and where Meg went wrong. Activists: Honouring Our HeroesAnna Stewart changed the lives of Australian working families by helping women achieve balance between the competing demands of work and family. Women: The Future is FemaleJulia Gillard outlines the campaign to increase female representation within the Australian Labor Party. Unions: Sweatshops � Beyond 2001 FairWear convenor Debbie Carstens looks over a unique partnership between churches and unions to end exploitation in the textile industry. Politics: The Battle for BennelongMany trade unionists are working to kick John Howard out of office. But only one woman has a chance of kicking him out of his own seat. Meet Nicole Campbell. International: Border SkirmishesAlana Kerr travelled to Thailand to observe first hand the battle to organise Burmese women workers in exile. History: Inside the Ladies LoungeThe McDonald sisters run Trades Hall, and have for over half a century. The building can�t speak about what has gone on in that time, but Lorna and Elaine probably know it all. Satire: Taliban to Put One Nation LastThe Parliamentary fate of Pauline Hanson�s One Nation party was further obscured today as key fellow right-wing extremists moved to distance themselves from the controversial Queensland politician and the group she founded and leads. Review: Seven Steps to SlavationJenny Macklin details the seven barriers that stand between women and a better working life.
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