Andrew Hall

  • Pathway to poverty: the truth about 'new apprenticeships'

    CANBERRA — Activists from the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) rank-and-file group, Members First, are campaigning against the latest tactic in the federal government's war on workers: using the federal government's New

  • 'Trust us, vote for a non-union agreement'

    CANBERRA — Government heavy Tony Abbott is asking the workers of his own department, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR), to trust him, even as he seeks to reduce employee conditions and to introduce

  • CPSU to restructure into oblivion?

    The future direction of the Community and Public Sector Union is to be decided December 3-7 as branches vote on whether to accept restructuring plans proposed by the CPSU leadership. The proposed changes — the concentration of

  • ACTNOW opposes war

    CANBERRA — Despite the long weekend, 250 people turned up to Garema Place on September 30 to oppose the military build-up around Afghanistan. This follows a 500-strong rally on September 20 calling for peace. A meeting called at

  • Focus on activist theatre

    CANBERRA — The changing face of politics and grass roots activism are addressed in four works in the Festival of the Contemporary Arts theatre program. Canberra's fifth Festival of the Contemporary Arts (FoCA5) is being held from

  • Public service unionism crumbling

    CANBERRA — Revelations from the troubled ACT branch of the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) indicate that the Australian Public Service is becoming increasingly de-unionised. CPSU members in Canberra were astounded to see

  • Socialist Alliance the 'best thing since 1917'

    CANBERRA — The Socialist Alliance was the best thing to happen on the left in Australia since the formation of the Communist Party following the 1917 Russian Revolution — a bold claim from the National Tertiary Education

  • Federal workers' compensation under attack

    CANBERRA — As well as state governments trying to slash workers rights to fair compensation for injury, the federal government is aiming to push through its own attacks that will affect 285,655 commonwealth public sector and ACT

  • Canberra to shut down Mining Industry House

    CANBERRA — Its final tactics all but refined, the Canberra M1 Alliance has predicted that its May 1 blockade of Mining Industry House, which houses the main national lobby group for the big mining companies, will be a resounding

  • Ruddock should resign over refugees' plight

    CANBERRA — Seventy supporters of refugee rights have called for the resignation of immigration minister Philip Ruddock at an emergency protest here on April 3, barely a day after Pakistani refugee Shahraz Kayani set himself on fire

  • Labour council backs M1

    CANBERRA — The ACT Trades and Labor Council has decided to back the planned M1 blockade of Mining Industry House and to move its traditional May Day march from the following Saturday, May 5, to May 1 itself. The TLC voted at its

  • ACT nurses reject pay deal with strings

    CANBERRA — Canberra Hospital and community care nurses again protested on March 27 as the stand-off with the ACT Liberal government and the independent health minister Michael Moore continued. Australian Nursing Federation (ANF)