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 About Us  About Unions NSWAbout UnionsWho's WhoInformation Centre What's Going On? Annual Reports    
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The Labor Council is the peak body of trade unions in NSW with 75 affiliated
trade unions, representing over 800,000 workers throughout NSW.
The Secretary, John Robertson’s
report
2002 was the second consecutive year that union membership increased in real
terms in New South Wales. The continued growth has been achieved through the
hard work and efforts of unions implementing strategies to empower and activate
new and existing members. Labor
Council’s focus throughout 2002 was on assisting unions with a series
of campaigns aimed at building the union movement in New South
Wales. OrganisingIn January 2002 Labor Council appointed Adam Kerslake as Director of
Organising. Adam had previously worked for the ACTU Organising Centre and the Electrical Trades Union. His skills have
ensured that Labor Council continues to drive the changes required to assist
unions organising for growth in membership and that our affiliates have access
to the most up to date techniques in organising. Industrial Relations Commission of NSW CentenaryThe Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales celebrated its centenary in 2002 with a special sitting of the Commission that was addressed by the Labor Council, Employers First and other representative organisations. In addressing the special sitting of the Commission Labor Council’s submission highlighted the many decisions of the Commission that have had a lasting impact on working conditions in New South Wales including:
Labor MediaIn 2002 the Labor Council sold
Labor Media for $2.1 million to World Media. The sale occurred after Labor Media
incurred losses over the two years it operated AM 1620 2KM in excess of $1.1
million. The decision to sell was carried unanimously by a meeting of the
Council and ensured the losses were recovered. Trades HallIn December 2002 the Trades Hall Association, a committee of the Labor Council, appointed a project
manager to oversee the refurbishment of the Trades Hall. The project manager
will liaise with the builder and ensure that the Trades Hall Association’s
interests are best served during the planning and refurbishment of the building.
As part of the refurbishment of Trades Hall it is intended to maintain the
significant heritage items in the building and to have a photo essay carried out
from the commencement of the work to ensure a record of all the work is
maintained for the future. RalliesIn 2002 the Labor Council assisted and supported numerous rallies organised by affiliates including: • TCFUA - Fair Wear Rally outside the Gucci store as part of a campaign against the exploitation of workers
• Labor 4
Refugees rallies seeking to change the Federal Government and the Australian
Labor Party policy on the treatment and detention of asylum seekers May Day Song CompetitionAs part of the activities undertaken by the Labor Council throughout 2002, a song
competition was launched through Wobbly
Radio to find a new union song. The objective behind this competition was to
use current music styles to get the message of trade unionism to a younger
audience. Executive Planning DayLabor Council held a planning day
for the Executive of Labor Council in August 2002 to continue the development
and implementation of strategies that were consistent with the expectations and
needs of affiliated unions. One of the main focuses of the day was to highlight
new and innovative methods of organising being applied in Australia and the
United States of America. As part of the planning day presentations were made by
ACCIRT, the SDA, the ACTU along with a number of Labor Council
Officers.
Regional CouncilsIn October 2002 Labor Council
commenced discussions with the South Coast Labour Council on how the two
organisations could work more closely together and the possibility of some form
of integration. These discussions are anticipated to continue in
2003. Community ActivitiesThe Labor Council increased its
community activities in 2002. International SolidarityLabor Council continued its
support for human rights and the re-establishment of democracy in Burma. As part
of this continued support the Council maintained the provision of office
accommodation to the Burma Office.
Finances
The results for the year to 30th June 2002 reflect the impact of a
full year of operations of Labor Media Pty Limited. As reported earlier, the
company was sold for $2.1 million and this amount recouped all costs sustained
and produced a sizable surplus. AffiliationsAt the end of 2002 Labor Council
received correspondence from the Australian
Manufacturing Workers Union, General Division and TSA Division advising that
they were seeking to re-affiliate in 2003. ResearchIn 2002 the Labor Council continued its joint funding, with the ACTU, of research conducted by the Australian Centre for Industrial Relations,
Research and Training into industries for potential membership growth. The
research provides the foundations for a more strategic approach to organising in
the future and debunks many of the myths associated with the decline in union
densities. BoardsThe Secretary sat on the following Boards and Committees:
Mark Lennon, Assistant Secretary
Assistant Secretary, Mark Lennon’s year consisted of industrial,
political, trustee and administrative work. IndustrialMark was directly involved in two major cases before the Industrial Relations
Commission (IRC) in 2002. Legislative ChangesThere were several changes proposed to NSW industrial legislation during the
year and Mark coordinated the negotiations on the part of the Labor Council.
ElectricityIn the electricity industry in 2002 Mark conducted for negotiations over the
future of Pacific Power
International the engineering and consulting arm of the NSW electricity
industry. SuperannuationThere was a significant victory for public sector unions in superannuation
with the Government agreeing that employees who are on maternity leave or
adoption leave will have their superannuation contributions paid into First State Super, the State
Government’s accumulation fund. Trades HallIn the lead up to the redevelopment of the Trades Hall, Mark was responsible
for overseeing the acquisition by Labor Council of all the shares in the Trades
Hall. Having purchased 800,000 shares in Trades Hall in 2001, Labor Council in
2002 sought to take up the remaining shares by the process of compulsory
acquisition. The process was a complex one under the Corporations Law, which
involved Labor Council getting an independent valuation of the Trades Hall to
determine whether the price being offered for the shares was fair. ForestsMark conducted negotiations with the Government over concerns by members
employed in State Forests that
further land would be handed over to the National Parks and Wildlife Service
thereby impacting on jobs. Meetings were held with both the Minister for Forests
and the Minister for Planning to express the unions’ concerns. The point
the unions sought to make is that the Regional Forests Agreements process
conducted over the last five years was meant to have brought certainty to the
industry and that the talk of handing over further land to the National Parks
was only bringing unnecessary instability to the industry. Other ResponsibilitiesMark continued in the role as Chairperson of the Funeral Industry Council of
NSW in 2002. During the year, the Council made some significant steps in its
endeavours to have the industry better regulated. The Minister for Health agreed
that there should be an accreditation system set up for the industry. The actual
scheme is still being formulated but it will allow for disreputable
practitioners to be removed from the industry.
Chris Christodoulou, Deputy Assistant Secretary
Organising
Chris was involved in a range of activities during 2002, including
responsibility for the building and construction industry, labour hire matters,
and contracting and compliance issues with Department of Public Works and
Services. Building & Construction IndustryDuring the year Chris, along with Adam Kerslake, have concentrated their
efforts in implementing a far-reaching agenda, which was set in place by
building and construction union secretaries in November 2001. Building and
Construction unions are the CFMEU, ETU, Plumbers, AMWU, AWU and TWU. The agenda amongst other things
included:
a) The Building & Construction Unions PactThe Pact was a crucial element in getting each of the unions to work more
closely together. The Pact was never going to resolve all the issues that have
sometimes divided the Unions in the past, however it has been particularly
helpful in commercial building sector where the CFMEU and ETU have formed a very potent industrial
alliance. b) Project Award TemplateAll the Building & Construction Unions have worked closely together to
implement a new Project Award Template, which the unions collectively designed
earlier this year under the Labor Council’s guidance. The Template sets
new standards in delegates’ rights, superannuation, redundancy,
immigration, death cover and compliance.
c) Build A Life CampaignThe “Build A Life” campaign has been the centrepiece of the
Building and Construction Union EBA round. d) Compliance IssuesOnce again the Labor Council was
requested to highlight non-compliance in the building and construction
industry. e) Building Industry Royal CommissionDuring 2002 the Building Industry Royal Commission came to New South Wales.
Labor Council deliberately played a
minimum role in the proceedings so that our resources weren’t diverted
from our campaign and industrial agenda. However, Labor Council supported and
organized a number of rallies outside the Commission. f) Major Project Disputesi) Walsh BayThe largest building site in Sydney, Walsh Bay, was subjected to industrial
disputes as building workers sought to review the site agreement to improve
parking, site allowances, superannuation, death cover, delegates rights and
immigration compliance. ii) Westfields Bondi JunctionWestfield - Bondi Junction was another major dispute during the course of
the year, which saw industrial action taken in support of a new project award
including a site allowance and the introduction of shutdown weekends consistent
with the “Build A Life Campaign”. Again the campaign was successful
and Labor Council played an important
role in facilitating the negotiations. Memorandum of Understanding – Department of Public Works & ServicesIn April of last year a Memorandum of Understanding was finally signed off
with Minister Iemma, which commits the government, and, in particular, the DPWS to only do business with
companies who comply with all employment and related laws. This agreement has
taken over twelve (12) months to negotiate and recognizes the role of the unions
in ensuring companies abide by the law. Labor Council hopes that in 2003
affiliates take advantage of the MOU to expose any companies, which do not
comply. Local Government Memorandum of UnderstandingFollowing the arrangements set with the DPWS the Labor Council has
embarked upon a plan to have a similar MOU with key local councils in the Sydney
Region. National Rugby League DisputeThe TCFUA were successful during 2002
in signing an historic agreement with the National Rugby League (NRL) over the
production of Licensed Goods eg: football jerseys. The Labor Council assisted during the course
of the negotiations and will continue to play a role as requested by the TCFUA to ensure all licensees of the NRL
comply with the newly signed agreement. Labor HireDuring the course of the year Chris, along with representatives from the CFMEU and NUW have participated in a Department of Industrial Relations Working
Party to try and reach agreement on a licensing regime for the labor hire
industry. Ribs ‘n’ Rumps Immigration ScandalLast year we highlighted the inappropriate use of Business Visas with respect
to seven stonemasons at a Hindu Temple in Helensburgh. The issue of the
inappropriate use of visas continued throughout 2002 and was highlighted by the
action taken by the CFMEU and the Labor Council against the Ribs
‘n’ Rumps Seafood Restaurant chain on Sydney’s North Shore.
Other ResponsibilitiesChris continues to play an active role on the following bodies: • Sydney Olympic Park Authority • Wollongong Sportsground Trust
Alison Peters, Deputy Assistant Secretary Community
Affairs
Equity and diversity has been a key theme of Alison’s work during 2002.
Our movement is a reflection of the diversity in our society and unions have
long recognised the importance of ensuring that the specific needs of different
groups of workers are addressed to enhance fairness and equality in workplaces
and in our broader communities. Maternity LeaveA major union equity campaign has been seeking to achieve a national scheme
for Paid Maternity Leave. This has been a significant issue for many years but
the campaign was given a higher profile during the year with an inquiry into the
issue being conducted by the Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Pru Goward. Alison
was involved in arranging meetings and forums of unions, women’s and other
community groups to discuss the issue and to develop a coordinated response to
the many issues raised by the Inquiry. Alison also researched and drafted Labor
Council’s submission to the Inquiry in consultation with affiliates and
the ACTU and was involved in briefing the
NSW Government on the union movement’s position. Work and FamilyThe Paid Maternity Leave Inquiry has also helped to highlight the growing
importance of work and family initiatives. Balancing work and family
responsibilities is a major issue for working people and the union movement has
been at the forefront in developing innovative and practical responses. Alison
has participated in and spoken at a number of community and academic forums that
have developed greater understanding of the issues and the barriers to achieving
a better balance between work and other facets of people’s lives. She
continues to provide advice to unions on developments, both legal and
industrial. Workers Out ConferenceAlison was also an active member of the organising Committee for the Workers
Out! Second World Conference of Lesbian and Gay Trade Unionists, which was held
in Sydney in November. This very successful conference had over 160 participants
from every continent representing a wide range of industries and occupations and
was supported by the ICFTU and nine out of
the 10 global union federations. The conference dealt with the very real
discrimination still faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual , transgender and intersex
(LGBTI) workers and developed strategies to address this. The Conference
resolution called on all unions, peak union organisations and global union
federations to work on the elimination of discrimination based on sexual
orientation, gender identity and gender expression. Community OrganisationsAlison has continued her work in building and maintaining alliances with a
wide variety of community organisations and groups. This has involved meeting
with and addressing a wide range of community organisations and groups
throughout the year about unions, our campaigns and our work to achieve a fair
and decent society. This work has seen a better understanding of the links
between the labor movement and other groups. As a result there has been a
greater level of involvement by union members in broader community campaigns and
events such as the Palm Sunday march, International Women’s Day march,
Mardi Gras Fair Day and Parade, Walk Against the War and the Fair Trade rally.
Union support of such campaigns and events is entirely consistent with our
objectives of improving the quality of lives for working people and their
families by ensuring fairness and decency are maintained as core principles in
our society. Our participation also builds our relationship with other community
organisations, which is critical to building broad community support for
workers’ issues and the union movement. Other ResponsibilitiesAlison’s other significant work during the year included :-
• ACTU Women’s Committee • Australian Centre for Co-operative Research and Development Board • NSW Capacity Building for NGO’s Project Reference Group
• NSW Privacy Advisory Committee • Sydney University Work and Organisational Studies Advisory Board • Sydney Water Corporation and its subsidiary Australian Water Technologies
Michael Gadiel, Deputy Assistant Secretary
Industrial
In 2002 Michael commenced the process of transitioning away from the
transport portfolio passing his responsibilities in this area to Alison Peters
and Mark Morey. RailARTCThe Australian Rail Track Corporation
(ARTC) manages rail track infrastructure in South Australia, Victoria and
Western Australia. The company is headquartered in South Australia and owned by
the Federal Government.
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| Mary Yaager | |
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| Workers Compensation and Occupational Health and Safety Coordinator |
Mary retained her responsibilities for the coordination and development of Labor Council’s policies on:
In addition to this,
Mary also retained the responsibility for coordinating organising campaigns in
Rural and Regional areas.
The Labor Council received
government funding through the WorkCover Legislative
Assist Funding Program to assist unions to educate their delegates and
members on the recent reforms to workers compensation and occupational health
and safety. Mary developed a number of generic and comprehensive training
modules on workers compensation for unions to adapt and roll out in their
specific industry. The six separate modules were:
In addition, Mary also
developed a separate condensed component of all of the above modules for unions
to use as a lunch and learn module.
Similarly through the WorkCover Legislative
Assist Funding Program Mary developed a number of comprehensive generic
training modules on occupational health and safety for unions to adapt to their
specific industry. The five separate modules were:
In addition, Mary also developed a separate
component, which focused on how to use occupational health and safety as an
organising tool in the workplace.
After the training modules were developed and approved by WorkCover, Mary conducted a number
of Train the Trainer seminars for all union organisers.
Mary, with Labor Council Officers, Mark Morey,
Susan Sheather, Michael Gadiel and Rivet Media carried out a number of
‘Organising Around OHS’ workshops throughout the year for union
organisers and their delegates. Mary conducted these workshops in Orange,
Newcastle, Wollongong, Parkes, Tamworth, Wagga Wagga, Penrith, as well as
Sydney. Mary identified the potential for a number of hot OHS issues arising
out of these workshops and is working with a number of unions to pursue
organising opportunities.
Mary produced an easy guide for union representatives on workers compensation
and occupational health and safety in a pocket sized booklet.
The booklet
contains information on:
As from September the 1st 2002, under the new OHS laws workplaces
can elect individual safety representatives. The new OHS Regulation 2001
provides powers to unions to be part of the process and also to conduct the
election of these representatives. Mary therefore designed a leaflet for the
union organisers to use in their individual campaigns for recruiting members or
delegates to become OHS representatives.
After running an OHS Workshop in the Mid West of the State, Mary quickly
recognised the potential for an OHS campaign with the Nurses.
Labor Council Officers, Mark Morey and
Tara De Boehmler (Rivet Media) worked with Mary in conjunction with the Nurses Association to conduct OHS
campaign workshops for delegates in the Mid West Health in September 2002. This
involved delegates from all of the different hospitals and nursing homes in the
region. A number of workshops were held which involved the delegates developing
the campaign strategy and materials i.e. leaflets, surveys, flyers, petitions
and the campaign slogans. It also provided them with skills for dealing with the
media i.e. preparing media releases and a media strategy for the campaign. The
purpose was to build delegate structures and their confidence in organising and
campaigning.
During the workshops the delegates developed:
The campaign was held in the week commencing the
21st of October and was a great success. The delegates ran the whole
campaign and the media coverage was sensational.
As a follow up Mary,
with other Labor Council Officers and our media unit, will compile a Campaign
Manual for unions to modify. The manual will include a collection of campaign
material, which has been developed by unions in campaigns.
The feedback form the delegates was so positive that the Labor Council, with the Health Industry
Unions will run a number of OHS Campaigns throughout a number of different
regions in 2003.
Mary will also be working with other unions to identify
organising opportunities around OHS.
The Labor Council made a decision
that all occupational health and safety material should be branded with an
easily recognisable and marketable logo. Mary conducted a number of focus
groups comprising of union members and delegates to develop ideas for slogans.
The focus groups came up with a number of different slogans and these were then
tested with other focus groups, and the slogan developed by an MEU delegate “UNIONSAFE:
KNOW UNION, KNOW SAFETY, KNOW
LIVING” was overwhelmingly supported over any of the other
slogans.
The UnionSafe slogan was officially launched in September and
now all of the Labor Council’s OHS materials are using the
logo.
As part of a WorkCover grant project, Labor Council has reconstructed our
occupational health and safety internet site, which sits alongside
LaborNET.
The reconstructed site now known as the UnionSafe website has been designed to
make delegates’ and union organisers’ job easier. The site caters
for workplace safety reps, OHS committee representatives, union officials and
trade union educators. In addition it has a special section for teachers and
students.
The site was built around the different jobs that go into
making a workplace safer and is designed to be like a web-based office. The
website really caters for regional based unionists allowing them to have quick
access to information and also the ability to download and distribute this vital
information.
Mary organised the previously reported first ever Labor Council Safety
Conference for union delegates held in Penrith on the 22nd November
2002.
At the conference Mary arranged for the Minister for Industrial
Relations to present safety achievement awards to workplace delegates in
recognition of their contributions to safety in their workplace.
The
Secretary also officially launched the new OHS Website and the Resource Kit for
union delegates.
The highlight of the conference was when the delegates
gave their own accounts of how they had improved workplace safety, which gave
enormous encouragement and motivation to other delegates.
All of the
feedback from the conference was very positive with delegates requesting it
become an annual event and highlighting that it is a great opportunity for them
to network, share experiences and ideas and be provided with resources and
information to make their jobs easier.
The following policies were launched and distributed at the OHS conference at
Penrith. Feedback was requested from the delegates who attended and they will be
revised after the consultation and comment periods.
Mary and other Labor Council Officers, Amanda Tattersall, Alison Peters &
Susan Sheather in conjunction with a number of unions and the Workers Health
Centre produced a number of fact sheets on workplace bullying.
The fact
sheets cover
The Government reviewed the Regulation and the WorkCover Guidelines covering return
to work programs. Mary was successful in getting all of the issues, which were
raised by the unions addressed in the Regulation and Guidelines. The Regulation
and Guidelines clearly acknowledge the role of the union in this process and
that unions and employees must be consulted over return to work
program.
Mary, with the assistance of the Labor Council’s Workers
Compensation Committee has developed a model return to work policy
for unions and their delegates to use in negotiations with employer’s
regarding the return to work program. A number of affiliates have used the
policy in their negotiations and it has also been used to resolve disputes in
the Commission.
Mary revised the Labor Councils
Guidelines on Alcohol and other Drugs in the workplace. The guidelines were
revised and turned into a number of user-friendly fact sheets on policy
principles. Each of the fact sheets can be used in developing individual
workplace policies and procedures.
Labor Council will also develop a
number of model policies for unions to adopt and modify. The Labor
Council’s Policy Guidelines have been referred to in a number of
industrial disputes.
Mary with the assistance of our media unit, WorkCover and the Department of
Health has produced a number of easy guide fact sheets on the law on hazards and
also an A of Z of hazards. These are available on the UnionSafe website.
Mary in consultation with the Teachers Federation and the Independent
Education Union has produced an additional draft Occupational Health and Safety
Resource Kit for teachers to use. This will be piloted by delegates from the Teachers Federation and the IEU throughout 2003.
| Ernie Razborsek | |
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| Industrial Officer - Northern |
Electricity, Building and Construction were the focus for Industrial Officer
Ernie Razborsek in 2002.
Ernie started the year by serving a log of claims on Macquarie Generation on behalf of the
Generation Unions for a new 3-year award to expire in June 05 and Eraring Energy for a 2-year award
to expire in February 04.
The negotiations for a new award for Eraring Energy went well;
particularly given it was an extension of negotiations of other matters already
being dealt with by the unions following the setting up of the organization as a
State Owned Corporation.
The award was finalised before the IRC in
April.
At Macquarie Generation
however matters were quite different as there were still outstanding issues from
previous negotiations 3 years ago and negotiations bogged down on these
questions.
With some industrial action, assistance from the NSW IRC and
further protracted negotiations the award was finalised by a ballot of the
membership on the 18th of December.
This year saw the start of a number of major construction projects in the
Hunter Region with the Mount Arthur North Mine starting a three year
construction phase last October,
Tomago Aluminium has started a 3-year
upgrade this year after completing negotiations with the building and
construction unions for a project award.
Another project award negotiated
by Ernie was with Bovis Lend Lease for a $200M extension to Erina Fair on the Central Coast. It is
hoped that this will set a benchmark for further developments in that
region.
This year Ernie has organised a number of IR seminars in the region for union
organisers and senior delegates, attracting the Industrial Registrar and senior
members of the NSWIRC as guest presenters. He also assisted Mary Yaager with her
seminars on OH&S.
Ernie was asked to set up and chair an Electrical
Committee to assist Workskills Australia run their Bi Annual Regional
Competition and the National Workskills Competition, which was held in
Newcastle, the first time the event has been held outside of a capital
city.
Ernie continued his interests with the aboriginal communities with
regard to employment matters and continued to steadily progress these
areas.
He also continued to represent Labor Council on: -
Ernie represented the Newcastle Trades Hall Council on the
Myan Indigenous Employment Network
| Nancy Carl | |
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| Industrial Officer |
Nancy was pleased to complete her first year at Labor Council and enjoyed the varying
roles she performed within the Council during 2002.
Nancy was involved in
assisting with a number of issues this year, which included the
following.
Nancy assisted Mark Lennon and Counsel Jeff Shaw and Adam Hatcher with this
important test case. She played an major role in research for the case, the
collecting and filing of evidence and the organisation of witnesses.
Nancy assisted Mark Lennon With the State Wage Case. Nancy found the
experience to be very informative and was pleased to say the case gave her a
very good grasp of the Wage Case Principles, which will be invaluable in her
future dealings in the jurisdiction.
As previously stated, the
application was successful in obtaining an $18.00 per week pay rise for award
employees in New South Wales.
As reported earlier, Nancy has been working with Alison Peters to prepare the
Labor Council’s Reasonable
Hours Case, which will commence before the Full Bench in February
2003.
At this stage it is believed the matter will be dealt with by
consent, with the only outstanding issue relating to the clause regarding family
responsibilities. There is a view from the Anti-Discrimination Board that the
clause should refer to Carer’s responsibilities to bring the clause into
line with NSW Anti-Discrimination legislation. The Bench will determine this
issue.
Nancy attended the Reasonable Hours Summit held by the ACTU in November and gained a great deal of
insight on the issue from employer groups, Government, Opposition, community
groups and unions. As a result of the Reasonable Hours Summit it seems the
question of a “cap” on hours will be a matter for consideration by
the Union movement in 2003.
The Concord Hospital Strike Pay claim continued this year. The matter
commenced hearing in the Industrial Relations Commission and Nancy has continued
to assist our affiliate the CFMEU with the
progress of the application.
The hearing was to conclude late in 2002 and
Nancy is hopeful of a positive outcome for the members of the union.
Nancy was involved with the SDA in their Discrimination
Hearing before the Industrial Relations Commission against Babyco. The issue related to a member who
wanted to change her roster for childcare reasons. It struck a chord with a vast
number of people. The SDA
ran the case extremely well and their member was certainly to be congratulated
for her courage and strength.
Nancy was pleased to be of assistance to
the SDA in the matter and
was extremely happy with the outcome, which saw the applicant reinstated to her
position within Babyco and offered
shifts, which allowed her to care for her young children.
The MEU sought the intervention of the
Labor Council in their dispute heard
before Her Honour Justice Kavanagh regarding the transfer of Parking Patrol
Officers from the NSW Police Service to Local Councils. The dispute was
protracted and Nancy became involved in relation to the issue of pre-employment
medicals and discrimination.
On behalf of 2 members Nancy lodged
complaints of discrimination with the Anti-Discrimination Board. One of those
complaints was dealt with by way of a conciliation conference and whilst the
matter has not yet been fully resolved, Nancy is hopeful of a positive outcome.
The other complaint has been lodged and it is expected the matter will be listed
for Conciliation early in 2003.
Nancy assisted the ASU in
relation to an Unfair Dismissal application on behalf of a former employee (and
Union Delegate) of Virgin
Mobile.
The matter became complicated due to the operation of
AWA’s. The matter is still pending before the Commission but has resulted
in a recruitment campaign within Virgin Mobile including a BBQ held outside the
premises of Virgin Mobile to provide information to employees relating to their
rights at work. The campaign has seen the ASU C&A Branch secure
membership of approximately 2/3rds of employees and resulted in 3 active and
committed delegates within Virgin
Mobile.
As a result of the Virgin Mobile matter a suggestion was
made by the ASU C&A Branch
that unions share information relating to the operation of AWA’s and it is
Nancy’s intention to explore the possibility of running a campaign around
AWA’s in 2003.
Nancy represented the Labor
Council during what was a successful year of operation of the Ethical
Clothing Trades Council.
The Council was established by the Minister for
Industrial Relations under the Industrial Relations (Ethical Clothing Trades)
Act. The role of the Council is to seek to ensure compliance with Occupational
Health and Safety, Workers Compensation, Industrial and other relevant
legislation within the Textile and Clothing Industry and to abolish the use of
exploited labour.
The Council, due largely to the efforts of its Chairman
The Honourable Joe Riordan, AO, TCFUA
State Secretary Barry Tubner and Stan Moore of the Australian Retailers Association (ARA), was
successful in achieving an agreed Code of Practice which has now been adopted by
a number of retailers and it is expected further retailers will soon sign the
Code.
The success of the Code will be closely monitored by the Council
over the next few months. The Council is required to report to the Government
early in 2003 on the question of whether a mandatory code should be introduced
in the industry.
2002 saw the finalisation of the State Training Wage Award.
This
matter was one, which took 12 months to complete, and Nancy was involved with
assisting Michael Gadiel in finalising the negotiations in relation to the
Award. The Award was made during the year and has also been varied to include
the State Wage Case 2002 adjustment.
| Peter Lewis | |
 | |
| Media Officer |
The Media Unit assisted our campaigns in 2002 by working with mainstream
media outlets and continuing to narrowcast to members and officials over the
Internet.
Highlights of the year in terms of media coverage were the campaign in
support of Muslim IT worker Kamal el-Masri’s right to pray at work, the
emerging evidence of illegal immigration working scams, a working mother’s
right for flexible shifts to take her daughter to netball, protection of union
delegates to talk publicly about their employer and the Labor Council’s
search for a new trade union anthem – won by a 24 year old rapper from
Campbeltown as previously reported. All won wide coverage in press, radio and
TV, helping to reposition unions not just as effective industrial
representatives, but also a force for good in the broader culture.
The LaborNet newsfeed now carries
media releases from more than 40 unions around Australia and is housed on dozens
of union websites. This allows unions to share information amongst themselves
and their members, developing a more effective and united voice. The growing use
of cyber campaigns assisted the Combined Rail unions in their “Keep
Our Railway Together” campaign and proved decisive for the Hilton
Hotel workers in their battle for redundancy rights, with the Hilton management
inundated with protests from around the globe.
The LaborNet concept has now been accepted
across the union movement, with as stated earlier, the ACTU and the New Zealand Council of Unions joining the
LaborNet family, along with the WA and Victorian Trades Hall Councils. More than 20
individual unions are also now under the LaborNet umbrella, vindicating Labor
Council’s long-term investment in the web in cooperation with Social Change Online.
Workers Online continues to grow,
after four years as the union movement’s virtual workers’ paper.
Despite a change in format that has weekly news and monthly feature updates,
traffic has increased in the 12 months from around 10,000 visitors a week to
14,000 today. The influence of Workers Online has also expanded, with
politicians and journalists following its stories and editorial arguments
assiduously.
Our vision has always been to create an independent union
voice to support our campaigns, not reliant on the whims of mainstream outlets
to connect with our membership. It’s a long road to hoe, but in 2002 we
made significant progress in meeting our objective.
| Mark Morey | |
 | |
| Productive Diversity Officer/Research Director |
Mark has recently appointed to the position of Research Director after being
Labor Council’s Special Project Officer for the past two years. Amanda
Tatterstall will take over as Labor
Council’s Special Project Officer.
The Community Language Allowance Scheme (CLAS) Working Party was established
as a result of correspondence by the NSW Labor Council to the Premier concerning
the possibility of establishing a working party to explore the development and
expansion of community language allowances across NSW Workplaces.
That
correspondence arose following the Federal
Municipal and Shire Council Employees’ Union of Australia’s
(MEU) success, by way of application for variation, in having a community
language allowance incorporated into the Local Government (State)
Award.
Subsequent discussions between the NSW Labor Council and the Community
Relations Commission considered a community language allowance would be
applicable to many NSW workplaces and one way of recognising the language skills
that many workers are called upon to use in the course of their
employment.
The Department of
Industrial Relations was requested by the Premier to facilitate the Working
Party comprising the Labor Council, the Community Relations Commission, Australian Business Limited and
Employers First. The report of
the working party has now been finalised and is before the Premier and Minister
for Industrial Relations.
Mark assisted the MEU’s Legal
Officer Ben Kruse and Research Officer Lyn Fraser undertake an audit of 15
Councils in relation to their compliance in paying the community language
allowance to eligible council workers. The following council’s were
audited: Ashfield, Bankstown, Blacktown, Burwood, Campbelltown, Canada Bay,
Griffith, Holroyd, Hornsby, Parramatta, Queanbeyan, Randwick, Ryde, Strathfield and Willoughby.
The audit
revealed that major NSW local government councils continue to deny staff their
legal entitlements to payment for the use of vital language skills. Of the 65
respondents, 7 were ineligible, 13 used their skill too irregularly and were
thus ineligible for payment, 10 received the payment, while 35 were not
receiving the payment or their council disputed the payment. Upon completion of
the audit the MEU was able to resolve some
of the claims by negotiation while the recalcitrant councils were served a claim
via the Local Government and Shires Association. To date some $17,000.00 of
money owed to council employees has been recouped. The audit also provided a
successful vehicle for promoting the MEU to
non-union workers also resulting in the signing up of new members to the
union.
Mark organised the development of the Intercultural Skills and
Competencies for Union Organisers training package for Labor Council. The package aims to
provide union organisers with an opportunity to develop and refine their skills
in working with workers and communities from non-English speaking backgrounds.
The training package, which was implemented in April 2002, took organisers
through a range of strategies and skills that form a base from which organisers
can further develop their skills. Both the training package and teaching
guidelines are available from the Labor Council for unions to use and run within
their own organisations.
Mark assisted Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael Gadiel in coordinating the
single bargaining unit which completed the negotiations for the 2002 Enterprise
Agreement “Moving Forward”.
Since the finalisation of the
RIC Enterprise Agreement Mark has been
involved in a number of implementation working parties and committees including
the RIC Implementation Committee, the Performance Management Working Party, the
Code of Conduct and RIC Policy Working Parties and the RIC Consultative
Committee. Many of these committees will continue into 2003
Mark has
worked closely with the rail unions in relation to the redundancy program
commenced by RIC this year. This process will continue into 2003.
Mark
now has carriage of the RIC portfolio for Labor Council and continues to work
with the rail unions to maintain a coordinated approach to dealing with the
RIC.
Labor Council continued to be
involved in the award simplification process for the five federal awards that
apply in the NSW Rail Industry. The award simplification process has now been
finalised.
Mark assisted Deputy Assistant Secretary, Michael Gadiel on the rail union
campaign to oppose the Federal Government’s proposal, through the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) to
lease regional and rural freight lines from the NSW Government.
Mark
will continue to assist Michael with the campaign during 2003.
Mark assisted Labor Council’s Workers Compensation and OH&S Officer
Mary Yaager to run the organising campaign in conjunction with the Nurses Association in Mid West New South
Wales.
Mark has been working with Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael Gadiel and
assisted by researcher Chris Owen to finalised a proposal to increase the
capacity of Bosswatch to provide
better information on the top 100 Australian companies and specific companies
nominated by affiliates. The upgrades to Bosswatch will mean that the site is
more accessible to affiliates and provides targeted information.
Mark
will also be coordinating the expansion of the site for Labor Council with the assistance of
Chris Owen.
Mark was responsible for working with Deputy Assistant Secretary, Alison
Peters in the organisation of the Workplace Harmony Conference. The aim of the
conference was to look at developing strategies that unions could support in
local workplaces that would increase workplace harmony.
As previously mention Mark developed the Intercultural Skills and
Competencies for Union Organisers training package and ran training for
union organisers in April 2002.
Mark worked with Labor Council’s Workers Compensation and OH&S
Officer Mary Yaager, to assist Labor Council’s Industrial Officer Nancy
Carl to provide OH&S and Campaign training to RTA road workers. The
campaign aimed to address inadequate clothing allocated to the workers and the
increasing use of contractors by the RTA. The training provided the RTA
workers with basic skills that would enable them to run an organising campaign
within the RTA. Since the completion
of the training the project was handed to Nancy Carl, who has responsibility for
this portfolio.
During the year Mark spoke at a number of events and educational institutions
about unions and their role in modern Australia. Mark addressed a wide variety
of forums including the Defence Force Resettlement Seminars, classes at
Petersham and Campbelltown TAFE, Patrician Brothers Blacktown and the Teachers’ Federation Anti-Racism
Conference
Mark also worked with Labor Council’s Workers Compensation and OH&S
Officer Mary Yaager on the OH&S training to unionists in Orange and Wagga
Wagga on the implications of the new regulations associated with the
Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000.
Mark sat on the Department of
Education’s Trainee of the Year selection committee.
Mark
attended a number of conferences and training sessions including the Albury
Productive Diversity Conference, HREOC’s Conference Beyond Tolerance, the
ACTU’s Disability Conference, the Migrant Employment Taskforce and the
ACTU’s Organising Centre’s Advanced Organising Course.
As part of Mark’s role as Labor Council’s Research Director, he
will be coordinating a variety of research projects. Mark has already
established a research project in conjunction with the Work & Organisational Studies
Discipline in the Economics and
Business Faculty at the University of Sydney. The project Executive Pay
In Australia: Trends, Issues and Policy Implications for Australian Workers
will investigate the use of salary packages and business practices in major
companies within Australia. The project report will be available in April
2003.
| Adam Kerslake | |
 | |
| Director of Organising |
Adam Kerslake started in January 2002. Adam brought to the Labor Council a
depth of experience in campaigning and organising. In 2000 Adam worked for a
year with the ACTU Organising Centre where
he worked with a range of unions and individuals who were grappling with the
complexities of successful organising in a contemporary context. In 2001 Adam
worked with the ETU and assisted them
with their organising strategies. Since coming to Labor Council he has worked on a range
of organising campaigns.
During the year Adam worked with Chris Christodoulou on the major campaigns
within the NSW Building Industry. As reported in 2002 the Federal Government
singled out unions in the Building Industry and their strategy took the form of
the Cole Royal Commission. In reply Adam and Chris took on working with unions
to implement a far-reaching agenda, which included:
In the early part of 2002 Adam worked with Chris to design and implement the
Build a Life Campaign. This included cross union meetings of media, legal, and
education representatives from each of the NSW construction unions. These
meeting produced media and educational strategies and considered legal matters.
Adam and Chris also facilitated a series of co-ordination meetings with
officials of NSW construction unions. As mentioned, over the year the campaign
was run with an extraordinary level of solidarity of support between the unions
involved.
In an attempt to overcome past divisions between construction unions, Adam worked with Chris in developing the Building and Construction Industry Pact. As mentioned earlier, the Building and Construction Industry Pact was a breakthrough and to the credit of each of the Unions involved the Pact has added a new dimension to multi union campaigns.
Adam co-ordinated and ran a series of cross union workshops for both
officials and activists. These workshops were about building unions capability
for organising in the construction industry in a contemporary environment.
Feedback from the workshops was overwhelmingly positive and this set the scene
for a very effective multi union campaign.
In July, Adam worked with Chris Christodoulou and Nadine Flood of the ACTU Organising Centre to hold a cross union
delegate’s conference. This Conference allowed delegates to have a say in
how campaigns should be run and to discuss steps to unionise the building and
construction industry.
One of the principle themes of the 2002 Building and Construction Campaign
has been the need to focus resources on the non-union sector. Adam has worked
with a number of the Building and Construction Unions to look at the steps
involved in organising the non-union sector.
Adam has worked with Chris and various officials of the CFMEU in a campaign to ensure that builders
who contract to the NSW Government comply with the Governments Building Code of
Conduct. A number of examples this year highlight the fact that some NSW
builders are failing to comply with the NSW code.
In January 2002, Adam worked to set up for the Labor Council of NSW the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Committee. This committee is comprised of Indigenous Union Activists across the State of NSW. The Committee was set up:
The Committee was active throughout 2002 and is
seeking to strengthen its activities into next year in areas such as:
