Union rally condemns Coalition

By Ben Courtice

MELBOURNE -- About 12,000 people rallied here on September 30 in protest against the federal Coalition government's industrial relations laws. The protest was called by the Victorian Trades Hall Council.

Speakers roundly condemned the anti-worker record of the Howard government's Workplace Relations Act and the subsequent stripping of award conditions, and the assault upon the Maritime Union of Australia earlier this year.

Other Coalition policies, such as the withdrawal of welfare for new migrants and cuts to child-care, were condemned. Howard's refusal to condemn One Nation was slammed.

Greg Combet from the ACTU, referring to Kerry Packer's comment that Labor's three years “in the wilderness” are “not enough”, asked the crowd if workers could bear another three years of Liberal government.

Speakers urged a vote for the ALP. Leigh Hubbard, VTHC secretary, read a statement from the Australian Greens, supporting the right to strike. Hubbard criticised the Australian Democrats for voting for the Workplace Relations Act.

Shadow industrial relations minister Bob McMullan said that if the ALP government was elected, it would withdraw the Liberal government's challenge to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission decision to ratify the rolling of awards into enterprise bargaining agreements.

The rally loudly booed the government for refusing to give immediate access to social security benefits to workers stood down due to the gas crisis in Victoria. A minute's silence was observed for those workers killed and injured in the explosion at Esso's gas plant.

Hubbard said that an independent inquiry should decide whether Esso was to blame for the disaster.

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