
Issue No 94		04 May 2001

LaborNET	Ask Neale	Tool of the Week

News

Sick Chicks Win Privacy Rights

Workers in the poultry industry can take sick leave without disclosing the nature of their illness, after a ruling from the NSW Industrial Relations Commission.

Commissioner Donna McKenna upheld a bid by the Australian Workers Union as part of the section 19 simplification of the Poultry Industry Livestock Award.

The AWU argued that the removal of a clause requiring employees to state the nature of their illness or injury breached privacy rights and should be removed to help modernise the award.

AWU's Matt Thistlewaite says some illnesses and injuries carry stigma around them and that it was not appropriate to force workers to disclose them to an employer.

"The AWU believes archaic and intrusive provisions have no place in modern industrial awards in this state," he says.

Employers are seeking to have the decision overturned by a full bench and Labor Council has agreed to intervene in support of the union.

View entire issue - print all of the articles!

Issue 94 contents

Interview: Global Action
The CFMEU has been a world leader in fighting the war on global corporations. John Maitland has been one of the generals.

Unions: Sisters United
In her May Day address, Bus Union state president Pat Ryan looks at the role women have played in the labour movement.

Politics: M1 and the Trade Unions
Phil Davey was one of the forces behind S11 but chose to sit out M1. He looks at this week's action.

History: Il Duce Roberto?
His modern-day fan club might not like it, but Rowan Cahill argues wartime PM Robert Menzies sailed close to the winds of Fascism.

International: Cuban Call for Global Labour Rights
An international meeting of union representatives in Cuba has vowed to start a campaign to defend workers rights from the effects of globalisation.

Economics: The G-Word
ACTU President Sharan Burrow asks if there's a better way forward for global trade.

Media: Birth Of A Nation
East Timor's young journalists are struggling with language barriers and technical difficulties most Australian media professionals wouldn't be able to comprehend. But they're keen and eager to learn.

Review: The Tremulous Hopes of the Fifties
Behind the the good times mythology of the 1950s was a desperate quest for the ordinary.

Satire: Teen Angst Poems a �Danger�
The Teen Angst Gun Massacre Affair has broadened, with staff at the NSW Department of Education revealing that �gangs of conspirators� have been found operating out of high school poetry competitions.

» Workers Seek Security on Back of Living Wage

» Temple Workers Return to India Victorious

» Unions Get Down to Workers Comp Talks

» Firefighters Hand Hoses To Politicians

» Unions Back Corruption Fight

» 'Workers Bank' Protest Rally Backs Cleaners

» Smoking Decision Sparks Call for Pub Bans

» Boycott Trade, Travel with Burma

» Qantas Takeover No Impulse Buy

» Sick Chicks Win Privacy Rights

» Arnotts Workers Seek More than Crumbs

» Jageth Backs Jakarta Hotel Workers

» Equity Members Send a Dear John Letter

» New Theatre Under Threat

» A Toast to May Day

» Activist Notebook