Protests are continuing against the Victorian state governments planned desalination plant at Wonthaggi.
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Up to 5000 Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union members in Victorias building industry unanimously endorsed an enterprise agreement that guarantees a 15% pay rise over the three years of the agreement.
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A county court judge reduced the sentences of four G20 protesters on appeal on August 28. The four, along with other activists, received severe penalties last April in relation to altercations with police at a protest against the G20 meeting held in Melbourne in November 2006.
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Journalists at Fairfax publications walked off the job after mass meetings on August 28. The journalists, members of the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA), struck for a pay increase and against the announced sacking of 550 staff from Australian and New Zealand Fairfax operations.
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On August 13, Justice Bernard Bongiorno began his summing up in the trial of 12 Muslim men accused of terrorist offences.
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The fourth annual Equal Love rally and exchange of Midwinta vows was held in Melbourne on August 3.
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On August 6, Victoria University of Technology (VUT) hosted a seminar, “Pacific Islands Migration and Labour Mobility: Issues and Responses”, which discussed the potential for an unskilled guest worker scheme for Pacific Island workers. Some Pacific nations have called for such program to help alleviate high rates of unemployment.
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The Victorian state government is considering far-reaching changes to workers compensation laws.
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With the impact of global warming already being felt, it can be hard to feel positive about the future. However, an August 2 climate justice seminar at Melbourne University provided some positive directions for the 140 people who attended.
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An estimated 1500 shop stewards and union delegates met at Dallas Brookes Hall on July 30 to discuss the campaign against the charging of Noel Washington, the construction worker facing a jail term for refusing to hand over information to the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC). The meeting also discussed the ongoing Your Rights at Work campaign. It was called by the Victorian Trades Hall Council (VTHC).
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Following an extended industrial campaign by the Victorian branch of the Australian Education Union for better wages and conditions including smaller class sizes, Victorian Premier John Brumby announced on May 5 that an agreement had been reached with the union. The deal, which was later ratified by union members, awarded vastly different pay rates to different groups of teachers and failed to address the key issues raised in the teachers campaign. The following is a response by AEU member and Teachers Alliance supporter Peter Curtis.
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On July 14, the Victorian police moved in to remove a group of protesters from public land near the site of the proposed $3.1 billion desalination plant in Wonthaggi.