News

About 50 Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) members and supporters occupied the foyer of the Brisbane offices of Rio Tinto on March 28.

Rio Tinto has reneged on its agreement with the MUA to have 70–80% Australian crew on its coastal fleet. Instead it is using exploited foreign workers who are paid $3–4 per hour. This is despite posting a $6 billion profit last year.

Queensland branch secretary of the MUA Bob Carnegie said: “No Australian should be locked out of Australian jobs so foreign workers can be exploited and paid below a minimum wage.”

#StopAdani protest targets company boss

Over 80 protesters promised they would stop the Carmichael coal mine outside a March 31 appearance at the Hilton Hotel by Adani boss Jeyakumar Janakaraj. Protesters said they would #StopAdani in solidarity with traditional owners who are opposed to the development. Saving the reef and tackling climate change were other reasons given to stop the mine.

The #StopAdani protest was organised by 350 Brisbane which has pledged to build a people's movement against the mine, including targeting banks such as Westpak who have refused to reject funding the mine.

Photos: The campaign to free Saeed from Villawood

Since March 22, refugee activists have maintained watch at Villawood Detention Centre in Sydney to stop the deportation of Saeed (not his real name), a 60-year-old Iraqi man.

Below is a photo essay by Zebedee Parkes.

Read more about the campaign here and follow the Facebook page here.

Huge March for Science in Brisbane

1000 people marched through Brisbane to hear speakers talk about the importance of funding science research organisations and basing public policy on evidence.

"Our research organisations, both our universities and industry driven organisations like the CSIRO are critical for our future as a society," spokesperson Joel Gilmore told Green Left Weekly.

"We are going to have to move on from fossil fues as being one of our key economic drivers," he said echoing a strong sentiment in the crowd for recognising climate science and rejecting "alternative facts".

Perth action to Free the Cuban Five

The Cuban Five are five Cuban men serving four life sentences and 75 years collectively in US prisons, after being wrongly convicted in the US federal court in Miami, on June 8, 2001.

Love Trumps Hate in Brisbane

Hundreds defied rainy weather to take part in a vibrant "Love Trumps Hate" rally in Brisbane on June 11.

Thousands of workers protest the ABCC

Around Australia, thousands of unionists, led by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), took to the streets on June 20 as part of a national day of action against the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC), attacks on penalty rates, wage theft by employers and exploitation of migrant workers.

The CFMEU was joined by hundreds of other workers in contingents including nurses, teachers, firefighters, financial sector workers, public sector workers, university staff, manufacturing workers, electrical trades and maritime workers.