News

  • Andrews attacks SA industrial bill

    Alex Tighe, Adelaide Federal workplace relations minister Kevin Andrews visited South Australia earlier this months to publicly declare that the state Labor government "must abandon the Fair Work Bill" because, he claimed, if passed into law it

  • Melbourne anti-racist group supports the Redfern Block

    The following letter was sent by the Western Suburbs Community Campaign Against Racism (to the residents of the Redfern Block in mid-February. Dear friends, We wish to express our condolences to the family and friends of Thomas "TJ" Hickey. This

  • Anti-nuke protesters target engineering company

    Michaela Stubbs, Melbourne On August 30, anti-nuclear campaigners staged protest actions at the offices of engineering company Parsons Brinckerhoff as part of a national day of protest against the federal government's plan to set up a nuclear waste

  • Ranks retaking control of WA MUA branch

    Ian Jamieson, Fremantle For the first time, the Western Australian branch of the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has allowed rank-and-file members to express their opinions at a state conference of the union. Held over the February 14-15

  • AAWL meeting on Sri Lanka

    MELBOURNE — Lionel Bopage, the former general secretary of Sri Lanka's People's Liberation Front (JVP) party, told a September 5 meeting hosted by Australia-Asia Worker Links that hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankan workers had taken industrial

  • UC endorses Nelson Review fee hikes

    James Caulfield, Canberra The University of Canberra became the first institution to endorse implementing domestic full fees since the Nelson Review "reforms" were passed in parliament last year, after a motion put by vice-chancellor Roger Dean was

  • Venezuelan envoy visits Australia

    On September 7, Hector Navarro, the former Venezuelan minister for higher education, arrived in Australia as a presidential envoy for Venezuela's socialist president, Hugo Chavez. Navarro, who is visiting the Pacific region on behalf of Venezuela's

  • Students confront Howard

    Kiraz Janicke, Perth Around 40 students ambushed Prime Minister John Howard on February 3, chanting "Howard, come off it, education is not for profit" as he entered the 6PR radio station. The following day, another crowd gathered outside Liberal

  • Yallourn workers face three-month lockout

    Cameron Vincent On September 12, Mechanical Engineering Services Pty Ltd notified the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) that the company would be locking out 45 of its employees from its Yallourn premises for up to three months.

  • Victory in sight for Ballarat Uni workers

    Sue Bull, Ballarat The long campaign for an enterprise agreement at the University of Ballarat has turned a corner. The March 7 departure of Vice-Chancellor Kerry Cox, who is also head of the employer body, has opened the way for a resumption of

  • Patrol workers strike

    BRISBANE — Queensland Department of Boating and Fisheries Patrol staff struck for 24 hours on September 17. The patrol workers, members of the Queensland Public Sector Union, are negotiating an enterprise agreement and protesting the lack of

  • WA maritime workers protest Work Choices

    Ron Perkins, Perth On April 5, the Maritime Union of Australia led a snap protest involving 300 MUA members against the provocative actions of a number of maritime industry-based companies. Addressing the rally, MUA state secretary Chris Cain