LABOR UNIONS – AUSTRALIA

Unions lean on Labor to change bargaining laws

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 4-Oct-18

ACTU secretary Sally McManus says changes to the industrial relations system are needed as it currently favours bosses who steal employees’ wages. McManus has again advocated the need to allow enterprise bargaining at industry level, arguing that there is limited scope for further productivity improvements via negotiations at enterprise level. However, she says it would be a "last resort" for unions to take industrial action in support of industry-level bargaining.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, JOHN CURTIN RESEARCH CENTRE, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Union threat to Labor over trade deals

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 4-Oct-18

The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union has warned that it will reconsider financial support for federal Labor due to the party’s stance on the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership. The union has contributed some $367,000 to Labor’s federal and New South Wales branches in the last two years, but AMWU state secretary Steve Murphy has criticise federal Labor’s lack of consultation with the union movement in deciding to support the trade deal. The TPP’s provisions regarding labour market testing for imported workers is a key concern for unions.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP, ELECTRICAL TRADES UNION, TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, ONE NATION PARTY

Unions go national in fight against IR laws

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 6 : 3-Oct-18

ACTU president Michele O’Neil says the union movement will stage national protests as part of its push for changes to workplace laws. Work at construction projects and container ports in Melbourne is likely to be disrupted by a rally on 23 October, and O’Neil says rallies will also be held in other capital cities and regional centres. Australian Mines & Metals Association CEO Steve Knott says the Fair Work Ombudsman must respond appropriately to any unprotected industrial action.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN

Female pay gap exposes unions

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Original article by Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 10 : 28-Sep-18

The Menzies Research Centre’s analysis of the salary disclosures of 11 large trade unions in Australia shows that senior male officials were paid an average of $199,580 in 2017-18. In contrast, the average salary of the top female officials was just $162,669. The gender pay gap for the unions’ top five positions was 20.38 per cent in 2017-18. John Slater of the Menzies Research Centre says the union gender pay gap supports other data which suggests that many women are reluctant to take up jobs with high salaries but long and unpredictable hours of work.

CORPORATES
THE MENZIES RESEARCH CENTRE LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS COMMISSION, GRATTAN INSTITUTE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

CFMEU warns big miners over casuals

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 26-Sep-18

The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union says the landmark Federal Court ruling on the leave entitlements of casual workers may have implications for coal producers. The CFMMEU has advised companies such as BHP Billiton and Yancoal that they could be complicit in breaches of the Fair Work Act by using "permanent casual" workers supplied by labour hire firms. BHP is already the subject of a class action over allegations that labour hire companies were induced to employ workers at the Mount Arthur coal mine as casuals instead of permanent employees.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL COURT OF APPEAL (CANADA), BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, YANCOAL AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX YAL, WHITEHAVEN COAL LIMITED – ASX WHC, GLENCORE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ANGLO AMERICAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, PEABODY ENERGY AUSTRALIA COAL PTY LTD, ADERO LAW, WORKPAC PTY LTD, HAYS PERSONNEL SERVICES (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, PROGRAMMED MAINTENANCE SERVICES LIMITED, ONE KEY RESOURCES PTY LTD, ACTU, NSW BUSINESS CHAMBER LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

TWU wants for-profit pirates out of super

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 25-Sep-18

The Transport Workers’ Union’s national secretary Michael Kaine contends that banks and for-profit funds should be removed from the superannuation system. His views are a little more drastic than those of Industry Super Australia CEO Bernie Dean, who does not think that funds owned by banks should be barred from operating in the super system, despite evidence presented about them to the banking royal commission. Kaine is disappointed that ISA, which is a lobby group for industry super funds, has suspended its anti-bank "fox in the henhouse" advertising campaign.

CORPORATES
TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Legal test looms over Qantas’ bonus bribes

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Original article by Patrick Hatch
The Age – Page: 21 : 18-Sep-18

The Fair Work Commission may be asked to rule on the validity of its cash performance bonus scheme. The airline’s employees will be eligible for a cash bonus of $2,000 provided they sign a new enterprise bargaining agreement. Unions have expressed concern about a provision of the scheme which excludes all employees in a work group from receiving the bonus if one or more of them engages in conduct that causes harm to the airline. Unions believe that this may breach workplace laws, as the "harm" caused could potentially be interpreted to include protected industrial action.

CORPORATES
QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE

Regulator predicts pain for CFMEU

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Original article by Michael Pelly
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 31-Aug-18

The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union was fined some $5.6m for breaching workplace laws in 2016-17, compared with just $1.8m in the previous financial year. Australian Building & Construction Commission head Stephen McBurney says the militant union could potentially face fines of more than $20m under the Building and Construction Industry (Improving Productivity) Act, which has significantly increased the maximum fines for both individuals and unions. The CFMMEU has been fined more than $1m for workplace breaches so far in 2018-19.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS COMMISSION

Unions double down on trickle down Morrison

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Original article by Dana McCauley
The Age – Page: 5 : 29-Aug-18

The ACTU has signalled that industrial relations will be a key focus of its campaigning in the next federal election. ACTU secretary Sally McManus has described Prime Minister Scott Morrison as the "architect of trickle-down economics" and accused him of being out of touch with working people. The ACTU’s national president Michele O’Neil has urged Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O’Dwyer to support the introduction of paid domestic violence leave. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has committed to introducing such leave if he wins office.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Class action firm challenges CFMMEU

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 27-Aug-18

Class action law firm Adero Law is challenging an agreement involving the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union. The CFFMEU had secured a 2017 court decision to have an enterprise agreement provided by One Key Workforce, a mining subsidiary of labour hire firm Fircroft, deemed invalid. It has agreed not to pursue the decision if Fircroft pays its members $3.5 million to cover alleged underpayments and enters into an improved labour agreement with the CFMMEU. Adero Law contends that the deal with Fircroft is not in the interest of clients who are former One Key employees and who were not CFFMEU members. CFFMEU president Tony Maher says its agreement does not stop non-union One Key workers seeking compensation for underpayments.

CORPORATES
CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA, ADERO LAW, ONE KEY WORKFORCE, FIRCROFT GROUP, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION