Minister's AWA statement misleading, says CPSU; IR hurting Coalition, brawling hurting ALP, poll finds; AIRC joins Federal Government as Jackson Wells Morris client; and Five more years on Reserve Bank board for waterfront warrior.
Unions could make legislated collective bargaining rights a policy priority, with a high-level delegation to soon conduct a study tour of the US, Canada and Great Britain to examine their systems for guaranteeing such rights, according to ACTU secretary Greg Combet.
The ABCC will press its application to intervene in one of the first cases against industrial action under the Work Choices Act next week, after the AIRC declined to formally deal with the matter yesterday.
The ALP and CPSU say the Federal Government is failing to live up to its own rhetoric on choice of agreement, after a Treasury body offered AWAs to its employees, despite almost 90% of them petitioning for a collective deal.
Construction head contractor John Holland has engaged a dozen employees under a new Work Choices employer greenfields deal for a major BHP Billiton port expansion project in the Pilbara.
The AIRC today recommended a return to work in one of the first cases against industrial action under Work Choices, in which unions sought to rely on State OHS laws and the ABCC unsuccessfully sought to intervene.
A cessation of industrial action this morning by LHMU members appears to have thwarted the first application for orders under Work Choices' s496 to halt industrial action at the Sydney site of international packaging and coatings manufacturer Valspar.
The Howard Government today accused Labor and unions of "irresponsible fear-mongering" for reporting claims of unwarranted dismissals since the commencement of the remaining Work Choices changes on Monday.
