Under Siege

Councillors prepare union for renewed attack

The Australian trade union movement is preparing for the battle of the century. Not only is the Government to legislate away the rights enshrined in law for more than 100 years, now that it controls the parliament, it is also renewing its attack on the Maritime Union.

The Stevedoring Industry Finance Committee which provides payments to waterside workers with asbestos disease, the Seafarers' Rehabilitation and Compensation Act and cabotage all face the axe, as does the Occupational Health and Safety Act and unfair dismissal laws.

Not only does the Howard Government want to take away any rights working men and women have to protect their jobs, their wages and their families, it also wants to take way their rights to safety on the job and compensation against work injury, disability or death.

In May, ACTU National Secretary Greg Combet was a special guest at Council.

"Weıve got a fight on our hands and we have to rise to the fight," he said.

"We have to map out our campaign. It's a challenging time, a full frontal attack on the union movement. The boss is going to rock up at a job with a bit of paper and you have to sign it. Months later you'll realise what you've lost. I hate what these people are doing. It is so unjust.

Australian people don't deserve this."

The ACTU Secretary said he looked to the industrially strong and well organised unions like the mining and maritime unions to lead the defence.

"Youıve been through the hard battles. Australian workers need your support," he said. "We need your industrial leadership."

In response, National Council resolved that mining and maritime unions would join forces against this cynical and at times criminal harassment of unions, resolving to utilise any resource or capacity in defence of decent labour standards. The Maritime Union is also helping fund the national ACTU television campaign warning all Australian workers, union members or not, of the government attack on their rights and fully supported the national week of action in the last week of June.

Assistant National Secretary Mick Doleman is co-ordinating the branch response to the campaign.

"They're out to destroy us,"he said. "Unity is vital among the trade union movement. There's a changing mood among people. We've had the biggest roll up for rallies in memory , the biggest roll up of young people. Members can see unionism is under attack."

Council paid tribute to the members working on the Bayu Undan project who elected to donate money from their bonus to the struggle.

A joint resolution by the MUA and the CFMEU (Mining and Energy) promised to "jointly utilise any resource or capacity necessary in defence of both unions and workersı rights." This resolution was also adopted by delegates from 160 countries at the Mining and Maritime Conference in Long Beach.

International

National Secretary Paddy Crumlin reported on the international work of the union including co-chairing the International Bargaining Forum for wage rates of crew employed by the big ship owners, developing a Bill of Rights for Seafarers at the International Labour Organisation and discussions with the Chinese unions over Australian participation in the LNG trade out of Western Australia.

Council congratulated the national secretary for his work, noting that Australian maritime workers could not expect to protect their jobs, wages and conditions without delivering decent conditions for international seafarers.

Council also resolved to send two delegates to the SIGTUR regional congress in Bangkok in June/July. Like the Mining and Maritime Conference, it will focus on building a transnational campaign for labour rights, international solidarity and labour internationalism.

A resolution of support for the Colombian trade union movement and an invitation to jointly sponsor a visit to Australia was recorded after councillors heard a first hand account of a massacre implicating BHP Billiton.

And in PNG the union is establishing an exchange program, training, job-sharing in the LNG/NZ trade, an ITF inspectorate, a Credit Union, and making Brisbane and Port Moresby sister ports.

The union will also raise US$70,000 from the branches towards a dialysis machine for the Cuban Childrenıs Hospital.

Women

Council congratulated joint womenıs liaison officers Sue Virago and Karen Levy on their work involving women in the union. The MUA will also now support the creation of a womenıs regional committee.

Reports were also endorsed on training, cabotage and transport policy, the productivity commission, Seacare, drug and alcohol policy, the P&O enterprise agreement, restructure of union dues, recruitment in Sydney Harbour, the offshore industry and on board TT Line vessels and the MUA film unit as an ongoing joint branch national office project.