Meetings back NE motion

CPSU activist Ben Courtice writes from Hobart that 153 CPSU members working in the Australian Public Service attended a meeting last week to discuss plans to fight cuts to the APS. The meeting discussed the motion from the National Executive and an alternative motion put forward by union activists.

People spoke in favour of both the NE and alternative motion, which called on the CPSU leadership to reject the attacks on the APS; launch a community "Defend Public Services" campaign; launch a service-wide and union-wide industrial campaign beginning with a 24-hour stoppage and mass meetings and continuing with other bans, rallies and demonstrations; and establish a strike fund. After debate, the meeting voted 138-15 in favour of the NE motion, reflecting a reluctance to endorse strike action and hopes in the NE report to members, scheduled for May 9.

From Sydney, James Vassilopoulous reports that the NE motion was overwhelmingly supported across NSW, although in some workplaces where an alternative motion was put it was supported over the NE motion. Members at the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission voted the NE motion down 17-21 and for an alternative motion along the lines of that in Hobart 26-5. The state branch leadership put the vote count for NSW (with 95% of votes counted) at 3056 for the NE motion and 125 against. Figures for alternative motions were not released.

Tom Flanagan in Darwin reports that at a Casuarina meeting, the NE motion was favoured over an alternative motion similar to that in Hobart and Sydney. The NE motion won support partly on the basis that it didn't exclude the possibility of strike action, without explicitly endorsing a strike.

From Melbourne, Chris Slee writes that a very small meeting of 25 CPSU members was held at the Casselden Place tax office. The meeting reflected the extent of demoralisation after acceptance by other workplaces of a recent agency agreement which was a sell-out for workers. In contrast to the strong vote against that agreement (315-12) at Casselden Place, there was only one vote against the NE motion.

From GLW issue 230