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December 2003 | |
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Interview: Muscling Up Unions: Thinking Pink Bad Boss: Global Bully Unions: National Focus Economics: Friend or Flunkey? History: Young Blood Industrial: Living For Work? International: Fighting Together Poetry: Medicare Plus Blues Review: Human Racing
The Soapbox The Locker Room Politics Parliament
A New Mark for Labor
 Feds Ignore Building Deaths Bob Gould On Kicking The Liberals Out
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Interview Muscling UpInterview with Peter Lewis
******* We have a new Labor leader, what change will we see to Labor's attitudes to industrial relations? Labor has already made it clear that we will oppose the 14 bills sloshing around the parliament. These are 12 bills introduced by the previous Minister Tony Abbott - the Dirty Dozen bills - and two bills introduced by the present Minister, Kevin Andrews. All these bills further weaken the basic protections available to working Australians, and their capacity to bargain collectively and be represented by unions. I have said that these Bills are anti-worker and that therefore Labor will oppose them. My views reflect the views of the Shadow Cabinet, of which Mark was a member and is now leader.
The union movement is the foundation of the Labor Party and I will continue to make it clear that we are proud of our union links and heritage.
Mark Latham is on the record as saying he supports a move to smaller, work-based unions (Workers Online Issue #10). Is this an area where you see Labor making policy?
One of the great things about Mark is that he has lots of ideas on lots of issues. Our policies on industrial relations are already well known and are in the public arena.
The major trend in IR has been the rise of outsourcing and labour hire. NSW unions are pushing for new protections for casuals, such as the right to > apply for permanency after12 months. Is this a position federal Labor would support? Labor is currently looking at a range of policy options to address the appalling growth of precarious employment, including labour hire and casualisation. These are serious issues that affect the health and financial security of many of the 2.2 million Australians who work as casual employees. Another new challenge is electronic surveillance in the workplace. Should employers be free to spy on their workers?
A balance is needed between the privacy of employees and giving an employer reasonable scope to conduct their businesses in a secure way. I'm not keen on employers spying on workers. As for the Howard Government, what was your interpretation of the decision to pull Tony Abbott out of the portfolio? The Howard Government's industrial relations agenda comes from the top - from Howard himself. Howard is passionately anti-union. Abbott was looking for a make over from a bovver boy to sensitive new age guy, as he prepares to take on Costello for leader. The test of an effective minister is being able to implement the government's agenda - and Tony Abbott failed miserably on that score. He has put up stacks of anti-worker bills, virtually none of which has passed the Parliament.
Kevin Andrews appears to less confrontational. Will that change your approach to the government?
When Kevin Andrews first started as Workplace Relations Minister I called on him to take a new approach and dump some of Abbott's bills as a sign of a fresh start. But he's refused. He has continued with Tony Abbott's Dirty Dozen anti-worker Bills, and he has added two more to that list. Andrews is continuing Abbott's destructive work in the building industry, by introducing the so-called Building and Construction Industry Improvement Bill. This Bill would make it virtually impossible for workers in the building industry to take lawful industrial action and would severely restrict the ability of unions to represent their members, by restricting right of entry, even on State-regulated worksites.
But that's not all - Kevin Andrews has introduced his very own Bill - the even more appallingly-named Better Bargaining Bill. This Bill would allow anyone who might be affected by industrial action the right to apply to end that industrial action. This would mean that workers could only take legally protected industrial action if it was not going to have any impact on anyone. It is probably the most vicious bill since the First Wave legislation of 1996.
So I'm not about to change my approach - I am even more concerned by the Bills being put forward by Kevin Andrews than I was about those put by Tony Abbott.
In the lead-up to the election what role will work issues play?
Most Australian families are also working families. Issues relating to the balance between work and family are looming very large in our modern society. John Howard has said that he thinks the balance is about right - Labor doesn't agree. We believe working families need more help to make sure they can be both good parents and good employees.
Part time work is one way that many parents find helps achieve this balance, and Labor has committed to increasing opportunities for part time work for parents returning to work after parental leave.
Finally, as one of the new breed of Labor politicians, what role do you see unions playing in the modern ALP?
Labor is of the union movement. The union movement gives us strength. I see forging stronger bonds between the union movement and the ALP as being fundamental to the success of Labor in forming good, progressive governments that deliver opportunity and a fair go to all those Australians whose life chances depend on us.
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