By Herb Thompson
Of the national work force, only 39.6% are union members, down from over 50% before the Accords. ACTU secretary Bill Kelty announced before the last election, "Ultimately, it won't be a conservative government that destroys the union movement. It is whether unions are capable of organising the work force."
For the better part of the last decade the ACTU, with the assistance of sensitive new age union officials, has pursued two goals: to assist the Labor Party to win elections; and to assist the Labor Party to keep real wages down. Workers can not be "organised" by political sycophants whose first concern is to get Labor politicians elected and make bosses wealthy.
The case of Robe River Iron Ore Associates continues to symbolise new age unionism. In 1985, union membership at Robe River was close to 100%, as it was at all Pilbara iron sites. Today union membership is less than 50% at Robe River, and in decline at the other sites.
Robe River has reduced its work force from 1662 in 1986 to 824 in 1993. Productivity has risen from 9054 to 27,286 tonnes per employee. Except for the few who were recently hoodwinked into a pre-election position of class solidarity by the ACTU and then left to pull weeds in the sun, most workers at Robe do what they are told.
On November 30, 1992, senior management of Robe made it clear that taking part in ACTU-sponsored activities on behalf of the ALP can be costly. On this day 180 workers at Robe River took part in the national day of action sponsored by the ACTU, explicitly in opposition to the Kennett government and implicitly against the federal opposition. The following day, management gave 52 workers a week's notice. In the meantime, work such as pulling weeds and picking up trash was found to keep them busy. Twenty-nine workers refused the condition for reinstatement, which was never to be naughty and take industrial action again, and were given notice of termination.
Former WA Trades and Labor Council secretary and recently elected member of state parliament Clive Brown said that the dispute would prove to be an important test of the basic rights and dignity of workers in Australia. He said the same thing as TLC secretary in 1986. He was correct on both occasions. The unions failed the test both times.
The present TLC secretary, Bob Meecham, never says much of anything. Assistant TLC secretary Tony Cooke hesitatingly said, "I think the TLC is under an obligation to pick up this issue because Robe is a vicious and vindictive company" (Ho-hum). The assistant secretary of the metals and engineering union, Jock Ferguson, was the most forthcoming when he said, "Mining unions were buoyed by the workers' defiance. It just goes to show that at the end of the day, they know the union is the only thing they've got." On December 9 a mass meeting of 150 workers voted to go on strike after the company began sacking their colleagues. ACTU president Martin Ferguson provided the support normally expected nowadays from the ACTU, saying cogently, "Don't meet fire with fire, think the potential difficulties through. Use the commission and seek discussions."
At the WA TLC state executive on December 15 the motion was put, that "The ACTU be condemned for their public position in abandoning the Robe River workforce after those very workers accepted the ACTU's call for a Day of Action. Further, that the responsibility for addressing these issues lies fairly and squarely with the President of the ACTU ... and should he refuse to accept that responsibility he should be called on to resign."
With six for, six against, and the chair exercising her vote against, the motion was declared lost. That same day Robe sacked another 64 workers, but at least no-one in the ACTU got their feelings hurt.
It is now the "end of the day" for a large number of Robe workers, and most know that if the union is the only thing they've got, then they are in deep trouble.
However, as any union official knows, it is not proper to end on a note of doom and gloom. So let us look on the bright side. On March 25, 1993, only seven years after the original Robe River fiasco, a meeting of iron ore industry unions and ACTU representatives agreed on the need for a national approach on industrial relations issues in the Pilbara. And this will surely be done as soon as two of the unions in the areas stop fighting each other.
The Australian Workers Union and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union have decided to fight each other for the remains of a declining iron ore worker membership. The officials of these two unions know that fighting each other is a hell of a lot easier, and more fun, than bashing the boss. And bashing the boss is passé in new age unionism anyway.
On the sidelines stand the officials of the Metal and Engineering Workers Union, who have put their money on the AWU, because their policies and testosterone levels are very similar; and the Electrical Trades Union, who support the CFMEU largely because they have become quite used to being on a losing team.
The more radical unions are going after those who have yet to discover that the union is the only thing they've got. The Finance Sector Union is offering their members a "romantic five night escape for two" in Sydney or Perth if they recruit a friend to the union. If they recruit two friends can they get the same deal for a ménage trois?
The Australian Services Union is offering discount purchase offers for "entertainment, travel and music". ASU federal secretary Steve Gibbs says he is trying to tap into what younger people and women find attractive.
ACTU vice president Anna Booth figures that union officials need to rests with the interests of the employer", leaving the details to our imagination.
When Joe Hill said, "Don't mourn for me. Organise!", he could not dream how imaginatively his words would be translated in the 1990s. On March 19 the ACTU executive, in Melbourne to set the timing and details of Accord VII, were distracted by a visit from Prime Minister Keating. The subject of the day was immediately adjourned, and ACTU officials, staff and the trade union choir cheered and serenaded the prime minister with "Solidarity Forever" and queued for autographs. Eat your heart out, Joe Hill.