Issue No 91 | 06 April 2001 | |
Letters to the EditorDools Replies
It was good to see a response from both Tony Sheldon (TWU) and Michael Williams (HREA) with regard to my story on "organising". It shows, as I said in my article, a lot of people care about the future of our movement. Tony and Michael have a great admiration for the way Michael Crosby has led the way in driving the organising agenda. I share that admiration. I was also inspired by the way many delegates and officials in the movement share and practise this vision. My article was simply a note of caution that we shouldn't let our organising agenda become an excuse for unnecessary political division within unions. I'm sure both Tony Sheldon and Michael Williamson will agree, that whilst we need to push an organising approach, nothing can be more destabilising to the movement than internal union leadership challenges. These types of challenges only deflect our energy away from building a strong and united movement. I haven't studied the historical data with respect to union membership in NSW, as mentioned in Tony's response, although the latest figures in NSW give us some hope that we are bottoming out. There were actual real increases in union membership in key growth areas of retail, accommodation and community services. I hasten to add however that, "organising" at least in the short term is simply not about increasing membership. It's about finding activists, organising around issues and building strong and united unionism. Chhris Christodolulou
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Interview: Costa on Compo Labor Council�s secretary gives his take on the Big Stink over Della�s workers compensation package. Politics: Della's List All Labor members of Parliament were this week asked to indicate whether they would support injured workers. More than half said 'yes'. Here they are. Unions: Picketing Joy Rowan Cahill chronicled the definitive dispute of 2000 for Workers Online. He looks back on the battle and the lessons to be drawn from the workers at Joy. History: Vale Tony Mulvihill The environment, migrant workers and the hairy nosed wombat have reason to be thankful for the active citizenship of Tony Mulvihill. Economics: Stopping the Rot A national campaign is underway to persuade politicians from both the major parties that they need to be addressing the issue of poverty within Australia. International: East Timor � Beyond the Headlines It�s now more than 18 months since the violence and bloodshed following the popular consultation on the future of East Timor was front page news in Australia. Technology: Online Breathing Space The global collapse of faith in new technology has given journalists a chance to prepare themselves for the real revolution, writes David Higgins Satire: Howard Cuts Beer Price to Get Voters Drunk Prime Minister John Howard has agreed to cut the excise on beer, in the hope cheaper drinks will help get the country drunk enough to vote for him. Review: The Battle for 96.9Fm is Over What would you get if you crossed 2DAY FM, 2MMM, JJJ and MIX 106.5 FM? A fairly commercial radio station that wouldn�t know the difference between throwing up, stuffing up, growing up or breaking up.
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