
Issue No 98		01 June 2001

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News

Meatworkers Win in Federal Court

Meatworkers who have endured lockouts, pay cuts and intimidation have just won an important case in the Federal Court which will see them get thousands of dollars in back pay.

Late yesterday the Federal Court handed a significant victory to the Meatworkers Union for workers involved in a long-running dispute at the O'Connor Meatworks in Pakenham, Victoria.

The Union had argued that the workers were entitled to be paid under their Enterprise Agreement signed in 1992 which gave wages up to 60% higher than those being paid by O'Connor's.

The workers were locked out for 9 months without pay, then returned to work on lower wages and conditions with the employer paying them under another Award. Many of the workers lost 9 months wages and then, according to the Union, hundreds of dollars a week under the regime imposed by the employer G&K O'Connor.

The decision of the Court was that the Union was correct in its argument that the 1992 Agreement applied.

The Meatworkers' Graham Bird says that the Union had been fighting this battle in court for over 2 years.

"The decision handed down by the Federal Court is a huge win for our members, and a vindication of the Union's position." Bird says.

"There are many families whose livelihoods have been depending on this decision, and they will hopefully finally see some financial relief after 2 years of hardship and intimidation imposed on them by their employer."

Bird also says that the decision raised questions about the role of the Federal Government in this dispute.

"There are still hundreds of secret documents in Tony Abbott's office on this dispute. We believe these documents would reveal Government advice and assistance to this employer."

"Given this decision, there are serious questions to be asked about whether the Federal Government has given advice to an employer that has assisted them in fundamentally breaking the law in order to cut workers wages and conditions."

Senate Forces Full Disclosure.

Meanwhile, the Senate has ordered that 850 documents relating to the meatworkers dispute be released by the Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business. In a vote on 24 May, the Senate voted that files relating to the Meatworks be produced.

Labor Senator Kim Carr, who moved the motion in Senate, said that the documents may contain information about how 120 trainees, under the Federal Government's New Apprenticeship Scheme, had been used to displace long standing employees who were members of the Union.

"The New Apprenticeship Scheme should not be abused as part of an industrial campaign to reduce wages and conditions. Federal Ministers have become serial offenders in denying any involvement in this affair. With the release of these files, we will now have the opportunity to discover the true extent of the Government assistance and advice."

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Issue 98 contents

Interview: Balancing the Books
Opposition Finance spokesman Lindsay Tanner on bringing a Labor agenda to managing the nation�s finances.

Compo: Undampened Spirits
Despite atrocious weather, building workers took to the streets this work over the carnage in their workplace. Mark Hebblewhite was there.

Unions: Giving Blood
Local government workers are mounting a campaign to have leave to give blood donations recognised in their award.

Women: A Checklist for Women Voters
With a mountain of demands on Australian working women, the biggest question could well be which is the biggest?

History: May Day Meditation
May Day has been and gone, but we thought Peter Linebaugh�s take on its meaning was worth reading on all the other days too.

International: The Weeks of Living Dangerously
The now almost inevitable fall of Indonesia�s President Abdurrahman Wahid could have drastic consequences for the increasingly militant working class movement in that country.

Economics: No More Mr Nice Guy
In his new book, Steven Keen outlines why the public needs to know that economics is intellectually unsound.

Satire: NZ to be Disbanded
Following the successful disbanding of the armed forces the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark, has unveiled a new bold plan to total disband the entire nation.

Review: Action in the House
Workers Online�s Big Brother Addict argues the time has come for the contestant�s to take some industrial action.

» Twenty Grand � The Cost of a Life in 2001

» Compo Protest Virtually Ignored

» Workers Tell Jodie: It's a Bit Rich

» Disbelief at Dubai in the Sky

» Wage Rise For Two Million Workers

» Casuals Win Parental Leave Rights

» Egan Budget Welcomed � But Social Audit Still on Agenda

» Bad Rosters �Like Being Drunk�

» Nurses Act on Ward Rage

» Council Workers Brace for Border Skirmish

» Meatworkers Win in Federal Court

» Hotel Bosses Linked to Tobacco Industry

» Workers Demand Treaty With Indigenous Australia

» Activists Notebook

» The Soapbox

» The Locker Room

» Trades Hall

» Tool Shed

» Pop and Politics - Where's Billy??

» Satire is not Serious

» Toasting May Day

» WorkCover - Questions for NRMA

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