Unionists and health and safety representatives, as well as family and friends, mourned workers who have been聽killed, disabled, or physically or mentally injured at work on International Workers Memorial Day. Chloe DS reports.
Victorian Trades Hall Council (VTHC)
As a health worker and a trade unionist who supports a rapid mass rollout of the vaccines, I do not agree that employers should be allowed to force workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, argues Zita Henderson.
The rise in consciousness about Black deaths in custody makes the labour movement鈥檚 passive inclusion of police 鈥渦nions鈥 increasingly difficult to justify, writes Leo Crnogorcevic.
Venezuelan charg茅 d鈥檃ffaires Daniel Gasparri said that his country's problems stem from the economic blockade imposed by the United States.
Under the slogan 鈥淎ustralia needs a pay rise鈥, an estimated 170,000 trade union members and their supporters filled Melbourne鈥檚 CBD on October 23 for the Australian Council of Trade Unions-initiated Change the Rules rally.
On the steps of Victorian Trades Hall, on the morning of April 27, the deaths of 26 workers in Victoria over the past year were remembered in a moving service for International Workers鈥 Memorial Day.
The official statistics provided by WorkSafe do not take into account workers killed by occupational disease, in accidents in transit or people working on their own. Considering this, unions estimate that more than 200 workers were killed in Victoria over the past year in relation to their work.
The misnamed Fair Work聽Commission decided on February 23 to cut Sunday penalty rates. This will slash the take-home pay of about 700,000 workers in the retail, hospitality and fast food sectors by up to $6000 a year.
The commission will also reduce public holiday penalty rates for full-time and part-time workers in these聽industries.
Victorian Trades Hall Council and We Are Union called a snap action outside the Fair Work Commission in Melbourne just before the decision was announced.
Trump鈥檚 unstable executive orders loomed large at 2017鈥檚 first Left Q&A on 鈥淭he rise of the populist right and the anti-globalisation backlash鈥. Common talking points at the February 4 forum held in Melbourne鈥檚 Trades Hall were Trump鈥檚 xenophobia, the demise of the Labor Party, the breakdown of consensus across the West and the new rejection of neoliberalism.
Panellists from the left lauded the worldwide anti-populist protests, legal battles and upsurge in left-wing action, while advocating an Australian left unity project.
About 70 people attended a forum on聽September 27聽in Melbourne on聽Making Melbourne a Hanson free zone. The forum was hosted by the Victorian Trades Hall Council.
Guardian Australia columnist Jeff Sparrow spoke at the forum. He said: "Billions of dollars have been spent on fighting Islam by the Government so recent polls on racism are no surprise. There is a real danger that Hanson could become the new normal, a right wing version of the Greens."
The National Union of Workers released this statement on October 23.
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Recently the Victorian Trades Hall Council passed a resolution that included this statement: 鈥淭hat VTHC celebrates the contribution to our community from Victorians of many cultures and many faiths. There is no place in Victoria for discrimination or racism and we deplore those who would demonise any group by reason of their faith, race or culture.
VIC TRADES HALL CONDEMNS SDA ON PENALTY RATES
The Victorian Trades Hall Council has condemned the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees' Association鈥檚 agreement with the South Australian Chamber of Commerce to remove penalty rates for retail workers. The VTHC said it opposed any move to further the federal government鈥檚 agenda by attacking hard fought entitlements and condemns attacks by the business lobby to reduce workers' wages.
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