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September 2013
More than 350 community and Blue Collar
Alliance members blocked the entrances
to parliament to alert the politicians to the
affects of FLNG platforms on Australian
manufacturing jobs.
Floating LNG is flat-out economic vandalism.
It cuts out any opportunity for West Australianworkers and business to benefit from the
natural resources we all own, said AMWU
State Secretary Steve McCartney.
Attending the protests in support of the
AMWU were the CFMEU, MUA and the ETU.
The blockade successfully turned away MPs
and Ministers in their chauffer driven cars.
This was to show them what it feels like for
our members when they turn up for work only
to be told sorry, your workplace has been
shut down.
Multinational companies have been planningto take processing plants offshore, to make
it easier to employ overseas workers, costing
Australian jobs and skills, according to Mr
McCartney.
Woodside and Shells decision to abandononshore processing will cost thousandsof Australian jobs, the opportunity todevelop skills and most importantlythe opportunity for WesternAustralia to break into the globalLNG supply chain.
Employing cheap overseas workerswill save these companies millions ofdollars in wages. But the short-termgoals of these companies are going toleave long-term consequences for WA jobs.
Our natural gas resources should bedeveloped in line with Western Australiaslong-term interests, not at the convenienceof foreign companies. Chevron and Shelljust dont care as long as they appease theirshareholders, said Mr McCartney.
Unions are the only people thinking of
Western Australias long-term futurewe should be putting WA on a long-termsustainable footing, starting with banningFLNGs when the gas could and should bebrought onshore.
FLNG Update
Since the rally, Woodside has officially
announced that it will proceed with plans
to use FLNG technology to process gas
offshore from the Browse Basin.
The gas giant has also officially shelved its
plans to build a multi-user gas-processing
hub at James Price Point.Colin Barnett has admitted that he had
failed to create thousands of jobs for West
Australians and failed to create opportunities
for WA industry.
Union members blockaded Parliament house to highlight
the economic vandalism of floating LNG platforms (FLNG).
Rallyagainsteconomicvandalism
committedbyFLNGPLATFORMS
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Shipbuilding campaign off to a great startA group of twelve delegates have gone to Canberra to discuss Australian shipbuildingjobs and keep Australian ships designed, built and maintained in Australian shipyards.
The visit was part of an official campaignfor an Australian made navy. The campaignwas launched on the 29th of May 2013 andshipbuilders around the country stoppedwork in a bid to convince politicians to keepjobs in Australia and guarantee the future ofour shipbuilding industry.
There are currently major projects happeningacross three Australian shipyards, which are
expected to wind down between 2015 and2016, leaving thousands of workers out ofa job.
The previous Australian Minister of Defence,Mike Kelly was a guest speaker at a nationalshipbuilders meeting and he confirmed theAustralian Government wished to build 48new ships, including 8 new submarines at acost of $250 billion dollars. However, thereis no guarantee that this work will be done inAustralia. The onus is now on the new Liberalgovernment and likely new Defence MinisterDavid Johnston to get behind the shipbuildingindustry and show they are committed tolocal industry and local jobs.
If we dont get commitment to build the 48vessels stated in the 2013 defence white
We were seeking to get the politicians to signa pledge to show their commitment for theshipbuilding industry here in Australia, he said.
Currently more than 50 MPs have signed thepledge to support an Australian made navy.Not one of them is from the Liberal party.
Every federal MP in the area around Australianshipyards received a letter from AMWUNational Secretary Paul Bastian seeking theirsupport and for them to sign the pledge.
If you want to help the campaign, go to theAMWU website and sign the online letter toyour local MP.
You can also check out an online video withmore information at makingourfuture.com.au
paper, our shipyards will be forced to sackworkers and possibly close their gates, saidAMWU delegate Jon Primrose.
More than 6,000 workers around the countrycould lose their jobs.
Recently in Canberra, Mr Primrose met withfederal politicians about what can be done forthe future of ship manufacturing in Australia.
I went to Canberra on the 18th of June fortwo full days of meetings with ministers andsenators from all political parties, he said.
We had 12 delegates in total from all themajor shipyards in Australia seeking bipartisansupport for our industry, said Mr Primrose.
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STATE SECRETARYS REPORT,
WITH STEVE MCCARTNEY
While we respect
the election result,
it wont change our
unions priorities
on local jobs, skills
development and
decent wages and
conditions
3
AMWU Perth office: 121 Royal St, East PerthTelephone: (08) 9223 0800Fax:(08) 9225 4744
www.amwu.org.au
The fght goes onThere is no doubt the election of Tony Abbott and the Liberals
will make life harder for workers to organise to defend their
rights at work. But we have been here before and we wont
be taking a backward step. Our priorities for our members
remain the same.
The result wont change our unions prioritieson local jobs, skills development and decent
wages and conditions. The game might
have changed but our fight goes on: the
workers united will never be defeated. We
are a campaigning union and will fight for
the needs of members regardless of who
is in government. We have been here for
160 years and have fought and won against
tougher opponents than Tony Abbott. We will
campaign hard and stand up for workers
rights just as we always have.
We will continue to fight for the democraticrights of workers to join a union and bargain
collectively. We will defend our right to strike
and we will do all we can to stop the return of
the draconian and discriminatory Australian
Building and Construction Commission. We
will fight Liberal plans to make it harder for
union organisers to get into workplaces to
talk to workers.
Importantly we will continue our shipbuilding
campaign to ensure continuity of work for
our local industry. You can read more about
the shipping campaign in this edition of
Manufacturing Matters but now the focuswill shift to making sure the new government
honours the promises our delegates secured
from the previous government. It is a national
priority that we bring forward the build of
Defence vessels to avoid the Valley of
Death that could result in permanent loss of
capacity for our local industry. The issue is
just too important to play politics on.
We will also continue to fight for local skills
development and the rights of our apprentices.
The AMWU won a big pay increase for all
first and second year apprentices nationwide
just last month. Despite a 48% apprentice
dropout rate, the Liberals teamed up with
big business to oppose the pay rises to keep
more of our kids in training. We will build on
this great result to ensure our kids are givena chance to learn a trade before overseas
labour is brought in. Well also fight Tony
Abbotts plans to roll back proper market
testing before 457 visas are brought in.
On the FLNG front, well hold Colin Barnett
to his word now that a Federal Liberal
government is in power. We know Gary
Gray didnt listen to the Premier, so it will be
interesting to see if Barnett gets any respect
from his own side.
We call on our members to support each
other across industries, and stand togetherto build density in our workplaces. And buy
some comfortable shoes because sooner or
later well be marching up the street to KEEP
THE BASTARDS HONEST.
Our campaigns will continue regardless ofthe government
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(AMC) Facilities
Bechtel restricts site leave
for Wheatstone workersThe AMWU is outraged at Bechtels decision to restrict
site leave to Onslow to just 50 Wheatstone employees
on rostered rest days.
AMWU
CAMPSNOTPRISO
NS
Union members takeon Bradken and win
After a hard-fought and drawn out
campaign, AMWU members have secured
a pay rise for themselves at the BradkenBassendean plant.
This is a poorly thought out idea
that effectively amounts to worker
incarceration, said AMWU State Secretary
Steve McCartney.
This disgraceful decision means many
workers will spend their entire swing behind
a wire mesh fence. Its an absolute joke.
Mr McCartney said the decision was
made with absolutely no consultation with
workers or the union.
He said Bechtel was asking for trouble by
keeping workers all cooped up together on
their rest day.
Mr McCartney was also concerned about
the impact on individual workers and theirmental health.
We have serious concerns that
unnecessarily restricting site leave will
adversely affect mental health in an industry
which already has a poor reputation for
looking after workers, he said.
The union is undertaking discussions with
Bechtel to make sure our members can have
decent rest and recuperation while working
a long way from their homes and families.
Pay negotiations started in October last
year, with workers EBA set to run out at the
end of December.
The two parties were poles apart, with
workers wanting a 5% pay rise and the
company offering 2% and the ability to
move workers to any Bradken site in the
metro area.
After many meetings and the company
refusing to budge, the AMWU at
the behest of our members, lodged
paperwork with Fair Work Australia onthe 9th of May for protected industrialaction.
The action commenced on the 12th of Junewith a ban on overtime and the performanceof administration work and record keeping.
Given this was in the lead up to the end of
the financial year, it caused a great deal ofinconvenience for the company.
The company retaliated by locking out 8 admin
workers for two days. But AMWU members atBradken banded together, did a whip aroundand raised enough money to cover the lostwages of their fellow union members.
Still unable to reach agreement, the AMWUagain launched protected industrial actionon the 20th of June, and workers stopped
work for 24 hours. National Secretary Paul
Bastian addressed striking workers, letting
them know the national union backed their
cause and would support them all the way.
AMWU members again held another
protected four-hour stoppage on the 4th ofJuly, the company finally started to bargainin good faith.
By sticking to their guns, refusing to give
in and supporting each other, our Bradken
members dragged the company up to
nearly double their original offer. Well done
to all our staunch Bradken members on a
well deserved win.
ACAMPAIGNINGUNION
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More bucks inapprentice pocketsthanks to AMWUThe AMWU has welcomed the decision by the Fair Work
Commission to substantially raise apprentice wages,
however the union believes it doesnt go far enough.
Portable long service leave entitlementsThe AMWU has intervened at the Australian Marine Complex (AMC) to fight for
portable long service leave entitlements for construction workers.
On the 22nd of August, the Commission
handed down a decision to increase some
apprentice wages by up to 50%.
However, the union was extremely
disappointed the decision did not apply to
current apprentices, and the higher wages
would only be paid to those who started
their apprenticeships from January 2014.
The AMWU orchestrated the claim for an
increase in apprentice wages, a lowering
of adult age for apprentices from 21 to
20 and for employers to meet travel and
study costs associated with completing an
apprenticeship.
The AMWU national president, Andrew
Dettmer said the decision would encourage
more people to take up apprenticeships.
It is vital that as a country we are investing in
training our people, not relying on 457 visa
programs to temporarily fill skill shortages.Attracting people into apprenticeships and
having governments prepared to support
trade-training opportunities are crucial, he
said.
Under the decision, there would be a rise
in first year apprentice wages to 50% of
the trade base wage, while second year
apprentice wages would be adjusted
accordingly to 60% or 65%, depending on
the level of education.
This new wage win was the first change
in relativities for apprentices with year 10education levels for over 30 years.
The AMWU argued that granting wage
increases for apprentices was an essential
step in attracting and retaining trade
apprentices and would assist in stemming
the drop out rate that had climbed to 48%.
The Full Bench has accepted the logic that
this is about building Australian industrys
competitiveness by developing the critical
trade skills needed to lift productivity. This
is particularly relevant to our manufacturing
sector, said Mr Dettmer.
The Full Bench has drawn on many of the
experiences of our apprentice members
in reaching a conclusion in this matter.
Unfortunately, they havent included those
apprentices in the wage adjustment.
Mr Dettmer said the union would continue
to fight to have current apprentices
included in the wage rise.
With the transient nature of the Australianmanufacturing industry, increasingly movingworkers nationally and internationally, it isimportant for workers to have flexible leaveoptions.
Because the manufacturing andconstruction industry is very project driven,it would be nearly impossible for mostworkers to accumulate enough servicewith one employer to be eligible for longservice leave.
Thanks to the AMWU, workers at the AMCare now able to work for many employers atonce and gain their long service leave benefit.
It is also important to have long service
leave entitlements in the right classificationof the area of work, otherwise workers willnot receive the benefits they earn.
After scaffolders at the AMC were classedas fabrication workers when they wereworking in construction, AMWU OrganiserDavid Fox intervened to get the workersre-classified so they could obtain benefitsthey deserved.
Mr Fox knew that being put into the wrongclassification for these workers meant theywould be entitled to less.
This is a great result for the workers at theAMC and the union will continue to fight forother workers.
It isimportant to havelong service leave
entitlements in the
right classification,
otherwise workers
will not receive the
benefits they earn.
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WD Moore windmill workshop shut downAfter 150 years in business, WD Moore has been forced to close the doors of its
workshop, forcing several employees out of a job.
WD Moores windmill workshop in OConnor
has been dismantled, split up and auctioned
off over two days following a bad takeover
deal with Pan Asia, a Singaporean
multinational company.
Since its establishment in 1862, WD Moore
& Co has been manufacturing windmills and
solar systems to supply customers in rural
and remote areas Australia wide.
It is a travesty that a West Australian
institution can be cannibalised by an overseas
multinational planning to trade off the
goodwill and reputation of a local company
while shipping production off to China, said
AMWU State Secretary Steve McCartney.
Mr McCartney said Pan Asia had picked the
eyes out of WD Moore and forced one of the
workshops to send its patents and casting
moulds for the latest Yellowtail model to a
factory in China.
This was a profitable and competitive
company with a loyal customer base, full
order books and a rock-solid reputation for
building the best windmills in the world, he
said.
Mr McCartney said WD Moore had fallen
victim to expanding overseas companies
because it was a profitable company making
quality products, not because they could not
compete in an ever-expanding industry.
Now we are seeing staff sacked, some
who have worked there for nearly five
decades while others are losing their homes.
We are seeing the workshop split up and
dismembered. We are seeing WA-developed
technology shipped off to a foreign country,
said Mr McCartney.
WD Moore is the second oldest company
in Western Australia. Now it will be reduced
to a shop front, while we further outsource
our skills, intellectual property and local
manufacturing capacity.
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UnionwelcomesnewKimberleyorganiserRussellDaveyThe AMWUissetto take a long and hopefully fruitful journeyacross the Kimberleywiththe local knowledgeof our unionsnew organiser RussellDavey.
The unions WA branch is working closelywith the Kimberley Land Council to bring
the concept of workers rights to Aboriginal
communities across the vast area ofmineral wealth and Russell Wossy Davey
is the right person for the job.
A man of the world and a Bardi Jawi
man from One Arm Point, 220km north
of Broome, he will be the unions firstindigenous organiser in WA.
Mr Davey has deep community, cultural
and family contacts across the Kimberleyand has worked in the mining industry,
driving trucks at Rio Tinto iron ore mines
in the Pilbara.
A lot of (Kimberley) people dont know
what the union is about, they have to be
given the information that our union ishere to help them and not to make any
trouble, he said.
Its particularly needed with the resources
and mining, where there will be big
changes for communities and the chancesof jobs coming with the gas and other
projects.
His appointment comes as theopportunities for improving the living
standards of indigenous communities
through mining in their traditional landsis a focus of national debate, particularly
over the future of gas development in the
Kimberley.
If I can tell my people about their rights,about the need to ensure they have theright hours, pay, safety, then that has to
help everyone.
Mr Davey has deep cultural links in theregion, as an artist and as a dancer with the
Bardi Dance group, telling their traditional
stories. The group has performed acrossthe nation and overseas, in 2007 in New
York and Los Angeles as part of the high-
profile GDay USA promotion of Australia.
It also performs with other local groups
when the West Kimberley people haveregional meetings.
If youre involved with the customs and
culture, if you have that strength behind
you, people will listen when youre getting
other messages out, like talking about the
union, he said.
He represents the Ardyaloon clan on
the local Bardi Jawi Prescribed Body
Corporate BC and has worked over the
past few years as a mentor in One Arm
Points Capital Development Program.
I was helping people in my community
with the work for the dole program, a lot of
people are nervous to even go and try for a
regular job so we have to give them somesort of hope, he said.
Mr Davey hopes to draw on his knowledge
of towns and communities stretching
between Broome to Kununurra, possibly
using some of his artwork to explain what
unionism is about.
Its a long stretch of road, but its a small
place when youve been involved with the
Kimberley Land Council, going out bush.
You have to be able to speak directly
with people, appreciate and respect their
culture, their customs, he said.
Its knowing how to talk to them, how to
approach them, even the signals you send
with your body language.
WA State Secretary Steve McCartney
stressed that while Mr Davey was
familiarising himself with the AMWU, our
union had more to learn from him.
We can teach him a lot but well be
sending an AMWU organiser up there on
a voluntary basis to learn about indigenous
culture, something weve already done in
other parts of the state, he said.
Mr McCartney said Mr Daveys new role
involved educating local communities on
the value of schooling, work and unionism,
while trying to steer people away from
destructive behaviour.
Hes a guy who has worked in mining,
who is part of indigenous culture, who is a
mentor, Mr McCartney said.
I asked him can you do this job and he
said bloody oath, its a great opportunity.
All the new AMWU man needs now is a
car, a phone and a laptop and hell be set
to go.
Im challenging myself to take this job on,
Ill have all the training and all the support
to do my best for the union and my people,
Mr Davey said.
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BookaboutthehistoryoftheAMWUnowo
nsale
AMWU members might be interested in reading a new
book, which details the history of our union.
As a large and complex organisation, the
AMWU can trace its origins to the earliest
years of Australian trade unionism.
This book presents the achievements of the
union since the 1850s, yet does not shy
away from challenges to that history or fromcontroversies past and present.
The book details the industrial influence of the
AMWU since the middle of the 19th century,
discussing the importance of union banners
and their place in industrial and political
campaigning, and relating stories of memorable
people, movements, and campaigns.
It also stresses the significance of the shorter
hours movement of the 1970s and 80s.
Australia Reconstructed, one of the most
important - and neglected - union documents
of the late 20th century, is revisited.
Additionally, the politics of union amalgamation
are analysed, and the continuing pressures
on women as union delegates and leaders
are revealed.The book draws out the rich human flavor
of the AMWU and suggests its deep and
complex connections with the Australian
society of which it is part.
The book is edited by our National President
Andrew Dettmer and is available on
amazon.com
We have ten copies of the book, the first ten
people to email [email protected] will
get a free copy.
Banking just goteasier or KomatsuworkersME Bank (formerly Members Equity) is
now offering weekly banking services at
the Komatsu site in Welshpool.
ME Bank held a launch at the earthmoving
company recently, where Business
Development Manager Michael Hall spoke
to up to 200 workers about the benefits of
banking with ME Bank.
Organiser Gary Carozzi and delegates
Lindsay Morton and Rocky Versace were also
on hand to help out.
ME Bank was set up around 20 years ago by
the union movement to provide its members
with an alternative to the big 4 banks.
The profits from ME Bank go back to
members through their industry super funds.
Mr Hall said ME Bank offered union members
a competitive and transparent alternative.
We offer consistently lower interest rates
which could save members
up to $20,000 on an average
mortgage, he said.
Mr Hall said the main advantage of banking
with ME Bank was that reps actually go out
to sites around Perth to help workers with
their banking.
This means that people have access to their
banking at work, which saves them time and
money, he said.
Members who sign up with ME bank have
access to all the normal bank services like
opening accounts, checking balances, or
transferring money.
They can also enquire about mortgage rates
and ME Bank can then send a rep to their
home to answer questions.
ME Bank will also install ATMs in some of the
bigger work sites around the country.
Mr Hall said ME Bank genuinely had the
interests of union members in mind.
For instance, if a member was to lose their job
and had a mortgage with us, we have a hardship
policy to help defer mortgage payments while
they look for a new job, he said.
ME reps currently visit around seven bigger
sites in WA weekly as well as smaller sites on
a regular basis.