The NEXT coming Oz election thread!

The payoff to Howard's "Battlers". A kick right in the face. An "up yours mugs" from Khaki Johnny. It has to get this bad before it can get better, sadly.

Text of Prime Minister's statement on workplace relations
May 26, 2005:

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/05/26/1116950798933.html

Workers lose protection under IR changes
May 26, 2005 - 8:44PM/the AGE

Up to 3.6 million workers will be stripped of laws which protect them from unfair dismissal in the biggest shake-up of workplace relations in Australian history.

..Mr Howard broke a longstanding promise to only exempt small businesses employing fewer than 20 people from unfair dismissal laws, extending the exemption to companies with up to 100 workers - more than half of the business workforce.

He refused to guarantee that no worker would be worse off under the changes but pointed to the fact that real wages had grown by 14 per cent under his government, compared to less than two per cent under the previous Labor government.

"My guarantee is my record," Mr Howard told parliament. .... <cont.>

http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Workers-lose-protection-under-IR-changes/2005/05/26/1116950816669.html?oneclick=true

"My guarantee is my record," Mr Howard told parliament.

Those pesky Liberal back benchers at it again on the subject of detention of asylum seakers!

Liberals head for a crisis of conscience
AGE editorial ...May 26, 2005

For four years, the member for Kooyong, Petro Georgiou, has been lobbying the Liberal Party to soften its policy of mandatory and indefinite detention of unauthorised asylum seekers. It has been a courageous stance, but most of his party has unfortunately remained unmoved by Mr Georgiou's appeals to its conscience. He has now put forward a private member's bill to release long-term detainees and women and children from immigration detention. The legislation would replace the odious regime of mandatory detention with a system of "targeted detention subject to judicial review" aimed at limiting detention to 90 days. It proposes giving those on temporary visas permanent protection and offers permanent protection after three years to those whose claims are rejected but cannot be repatriated. The bills would mean, for example, that the 68 children believed to be held in detention centres would be released. They would mean freedom for the long-suffering Peter Qasim, who has been in detention for almost seven years; he says he is from the disputed territory of Kashmir between Indian and Pakistan, but the Government says it cannot establish his identity.... <cont.>

http://www.theage.com.au/news/Editorial/Liberals-head-for-a-crisis-of-conscience/2005/05/25/1116950753038.html

From the "cruel deportation" thread:
http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=46353&start=30

That makes sense. When he was Fraser's trained monkey Treasurer he left the country with a huge debt. When he became PM he began to leave a string of broken promises which continues to this very day. Him and truth have a very fleeting and ancient relationship. His guarantee is his record. We know what's coming from the Little General. How easy is it to move to New Zealand again? I want to get in before the rush.

Back to Howard's IR "reforms":

States to resist federal IR takeover
Brad Norington
May 27, 2005/the AUSTRALIAN

A LOOMING battle awaits John Howard as state Labor governments strongly resist his push to take control of their industrial relations regimes so he can create a single national system.

With the Prime Minister confident he has the winning hand under the Constitution, the battle is set to be fought out in the High Court as the states challenge an attempted hostile takeover. Mr Howard said yesterday that Australia had six different workplace relations systems with thousands of different federal and state awards. ...

...Mr Howard will formally ask the states to hand over their powers when he meets premiers at the next Council of Australian Governments meeting in Canberra on June 3.

He will make it clear that if the states refuse, he will take over their systems by force using the corporations power of the Constitution....

The Labor states of NSW, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania will band together to challenge the federal takeover in the High Court, arguing it is an abuse of constitutional powers meant to refer to company law.

Victoria will be excluded because the Kennett government ceded its state industrial relations powers to the commonwealth in 1996.

But Victorian Industrial Relations Minister Rob Hulls said yesterday that the changes were far worse than expected because they could see workers lose their overtime, shift penalties, weekend rates, leave loadings, redundancy pay and public holiday loadings. ... <cont.>

<complete article:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15419364%5E2702,00.html

"Hubris" - the little mongrel may have over-reached himself....I can only hope.

Well, it won't be long before the "battlers" who swung to the Libs in the last election might just notice that that things don't exactly feel as secure as they'd expected!

And I suspect he has over-reached himself. (Possibly another indication that he's not going to stick around all that much longer? Some other bunny will be left to cope with this mess, most likely.)

An excellent article about the industrial relations "reforms" proposed by the Howard government, explaining the changes in a historical persective. If you're at all interested, it's well worth a read despite being quite long. Make no mistake, this is BIG!:

Howard's great crusade
By Shaun Carney
May 28, 2005/the AGE

The radical workplace reforms will sweep aside a century of tradition in industrial relations.


Illustration: Spooner

...It is the changes to awards and to bargaining practices that will occasion the really profound changes. To effectively comprehend just how far-reaching the new laws will be, it helps to look at a series of bullet points on the second page of the Government's outline of its new system. It reads:

"Our reforms will:

· Not cut minimum and award classifications.

· Not abolish awards.

· Not remove the right to join a union.

· Not take away the right to strike.

· Not outlaw union agreements.

· Not abolish the AIRC (Australian Industrial Relations Commission)."

Anyone familiar with pronouncements by any government will be able to decode this. It means awards, award rates, the right to strike, union agreements and the existing wage tribunal will all be seriously, if not fatally, diminished....

http://www.theage.com.au/news/Shaun-Carney/Howards-great-crusade/2005/05/27/1117129894346.html

ACTU keeps options open for general strike
By Malcolm Brown
May 28, 2005/SMH


Learning early … Jo Durand and baby Carolynn join hundreds of union delegates at yesterday's meeting at the Masonic Centre.
Photo: Lisa Wiltse

The secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Greg Combet, refused yesterday to rule out a general strike against proposed federal legislation on workplace relations.

Responding to questions about statements by the secretary of Unions NSW, John Robertson, ruling out a general strike, Mr Combet said he was not going to speculate but, "I don't rule things in and I don't rule things out".

"What I say is that I am going to talk to as many people as I can, and I am going to listen to a lot of what people say and build support … where this leads to bigger and bigger protests, then so be it," he said.... <cont.>

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/ACTU-keeps-options-open-for-general-strike/2005/05/27/1117129901082.html

Premiers unite against plans, but don't want industrial action
By Jonathan Pearlman
May 28, 2005/SMH

The state premiers have united to resist the Federal Government's industrial relations plans but have ruled out supporting industrial action.

Instead the premiers said they would consider a High Court challenge and back a public campaign to persuade people that the plans were unfair.

"We are united in rejecting what the PM is proposing," the NSW Premier, Bob Carr, said. "Where we have state systems they have lots of fairness and they suit employers as much as the workforce."... <cont.>

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Premiers-unite-against-plans-but-dont-want-industrial-action/2005/05/27/1117129901085.html

Howard divides and rules
May 31, 2005/the AGE



The workplace reform plans create two classes of worker. That's immoral and will fail, writes Tim Colebatch

The Howard Government's workplace changes are the most important legislation that Australians have seen for a decade. They will reduce the risks facing small and medium businesses and increase the risks facing their employees. They provide mechanisms that over time will be used to cut real take-home pay and remove benefits.

They create a two-class system of Australian workers. Those working for big business will be entitled to redundancy payments and protection against unfair dismissal. Those working for small business will have no rights in either area, and could be fired at any time without a cent..... <cont.>

http://www.theage.com.au/news/Tim-Colebatch/Howard-divides-and-rules/2005/05/30/1117305556387.html

I want my mummy...

This is going to be SO ugly, Deb! We'd all better start girding our loins!

Yep.

Sadly my union is a wet dish rag.

I will be barricading with the TWU, methinks!