Critical Times

John Heywood

Around 9000 members and supporters of the Australian Education Union (AEU) took industrial action in South Australia last Tuesday. It was the first time schools have closed for a full day in twelve years and the first time in around two decades under a Labor government. AEU members in the Adelaide metro area descended on Rymill Park where they began a noisy march to the steps of Parliament House.

The combined impact of the state budget and the dreadful WorkCover laws marks June 5, 2008 as a dark day for SA, according to SA Unions Secretary, Janet Giles.

“Mike Rann proudly describes himself as being a “pro business Premier”, but he fort to add “anti worker” to the equation”, Ms Giles says.

“This budget reinforces the business windfall announced last year, and comes at a time when vulnerable injured workers are being stripped of entitlements.

Source: Serve The People
Wednesday, June 18, 2008

South Australian members of the Australian Education Union have vented their anger at the state’s Labor government by holding a 24-hour strike.

The AEU covers Technical and Further Education (TAFE) lecturers, pre-school and school teachers, principals, school services officers (SSOs), early childhood workers (ECWs) and Aboriginal education workers (AEWs) in the public education sector.

Frustrated by months of stubborn rejection of their wage claim (21% over three years) and faced with the loss of protection for class sizes and working conditions, members voted by 85 percent in Electoral Commission-conducted secret ballots, to strike.

By Max Oz

To paraphrase – from the title of a children’s story Run! Rabbit Run! – Rann! Labor Rann! is a fitting description of the current Labor Government’s efforts in regards to workers in South Australia. Although the Labor Party ‘Rann’ away along time ago (well before the appearance of Rann) from its working class heartland, Media Mike has contributed splendidly to its pretensions as “business-friendly” and “investment-friendly” rather being ‘champions of working people’. History inevitably catches up with pretenders and they’re a plenty in the Labor Party.

The biggest crowd seen in the Moonta Town Hall in 50 years turned up last night to discuss a proposed desalination plant to water a new Greg Norman designed golf course in the Yorke Peninsula town of Port Hughes.

The meeting, attracting over 300 people, was organised by the local Community Action Group with support from Greens MLC and planning lawyer Mark Parnell.

“The Local Council has well and truly been put on notice: the people who elected them don’t want to be kept in the dark about major changes to their community,” Mr Parnell said.

The following was a leaflet distributed to the May Day Rally in Adelaide, on May 3rd.

The Oath of Eureka
We swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each other, and fight to defend our rights and liberties.

The rights and liberties of working people continue to be under attack in this country.

It was easily the biggest May Day march in Adelaide since 1998 when workers’ anger was at a peak over the Patrick waterfront dispute. This year that anger was focussed on the Rann Government’s moves to slash injured workers’ entitlements under the state WorkCover scheme. Around 2000 workers gathered in Victoria Square heard AMWU State Secretary John Camillo detail the changes and their devastating potential.

May 9th – 18th 2008

The Radioactive Exposure Tour is on again. Join Friends of the Earth for a journey to remote northern South Australia where we will visit the Olympic Dam uranium mine at Roxby Downs, the Beverley Uranium Project in the Gammon Ranges, the beautiful Lake Eyre and Mound Springs environments and meet with indigenous peoples and local communities campaigning against the nuclear industry. The tour offers a unique opportunity to go out on to country and witness the impacts of the nuclear industry on people and the environment.

Rally at Victoria Square (Tarndanyangga) at 10am. March to Barr Smith Lawns at Adelaide Uni.

The Iron Wall – Green Left film night
Adelaide
Start: 10 May 2008 – 6:30pm

“This is a powerful film exposing one of the most pressing issues of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Source: A Communist Party of Australia (Marxist-Leninist) perspective

1. Introduction

In 2002 the Department of Treasury and Finance of the Government of South Australia released Partnerships SA. This document was a set of administrative instructions applicable to all government agencies in SA in relation to the development of infrastructure and the provision of services.

Some of South Australia’s largest and most powerful unions will flex their industrial muscle to ensure their members aren’t short changed by the state government’s controversial changes to WorkCover.

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, the National Union of Workers, the Australian Workers Union and the Australian Education Union will seek “make up” pay if there are cuts to WorkCover entitlements.

SA Unions Secretary, Janet Giles says unions are determined that workers injured through no fault of their own are not financially penalised.

The Verdict

The state government’s amendments to its controversial WorkCover legislation have served to tip the scales further in favour of employers.

SA Unions Secretary, Janet Giles has disputed the Industrial Relations Minister’s suggestion that the amendments were achieved through discussion with unions and business.

“These changes are manifestly inadequate and show that our concerns are falling on deaf ears.

SA Unions has warned the government not to gag debate on its controversial WorkCover legislation by guillotining it through the lower house.

“We will be watching this law like a hawk – especially given the latest bit of extremism from Business SA and its blatantly excessive ambit claim of amendments”, SA Unions Secretary, Janet Giles says.

“This law is already demonstrably unfair.

Source: mike-servethepeople

Two thousand construction workers marched off Adelaide building sites today (April 1) to demand that the state Labor Government not proceed with proposed changes to the state’s workers compensation scheme.

The changes further expose the social-democratic Labor Party as a party of capitalism and a bed-fellow of the openly pro-business Liberal Party.

The role of the Labor Party is to use the electoral credibility of people with ties to the trade union movement to win office, and once having won office, to carry out attacks on working people that the Liberals could never get away with.

by David Palmer
Text of his 16 March, 2008 talk at the Nowar meeting held at the Friends Meeting House, North Adelaide

Five years have gone by since the March 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States. Its allies – including Australia – played a role in the Occupation, but the invasion basically was an American action. Even at the present moment, there can be little doubt that the Occupation itself is mainly an American Occupation.

Jeremy Roberts | March 27, 2008

BHP Billiton will need nearly half of South Australia’s current electricity supply to power its vastly expanded Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine.

The mining company wrote to potential suppliers this month revealing that power demand for the mine was expected to top 690megawatts when it reaches full production in 10 years.

This 30 per cent increase on previous forecasts for the mine 600km northwest of Adelaide is equivalent to nearly 42 per cent of South Australia’s total electricity consumption and nearly half of Adelaide’s power supply.

Source: Communist Party of Australia SA Blogspot

When Michael Wright was the Opposition spokesperson for Industrial Relations and Workers Compensation prior to the election of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) to government in 2002 he was provided with an enormous amount of information from people inside the Trade Union movement and within the WorkCover Corporation that clearly showed that the scheme was on a downward slide as a consequence of political decisions that had been taken by the Liberal State Government and the leadership of the Corporation.

In 2000/01 the WorkCover Board and the CEO of the WorkCover Corporation decided to not only reduce the levy rate but also to provide a rebate to employers throughout South Australia.

In 2000-01 Michael Wright attended at least three meetings at the United Trades and Labor Council’s office on South Terrace.

Concerned citizens have gathered outside of Adelaide’s Hilton Hotel this morning in opposition to the annual Paydirt Uranium Conference 2008.

“South Australians are currently experiencing the hottest March on record. As climate change further restricts SA’s precious water, Friends of the Earth is calling for a framework that acknowledges and protects the integrity of Australia’s unique groundwater resources,” said Friends of the Earth campaigner Shani Burdon.

Start: 29 Mar 2008 – 6:30pm

Celebrate the struggle with Green Left, guest speaker, Indigenous activist, Lynette Crocker, live music from Ben Bugden & friends. Delicious 3 course meal. South West Community Centre, 171 Sturt St, City.

Source: http://mike-servethepeople.blogspot.com

A small group of a dozen people managed to attend a hastily called rally last Monday, supporting a call to ban uranium mining in the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary.