FED: ACTU leader signals "week of protest" against IR reform

AAP General News (Australia)
04-08-1999
FED: ACTU leader signals "week of protest" against IR reform

By Denis Peters

SYDNEY, April 8 AAP - ACTU president Jennie George tonight foreshadowed a week of protests
against the federal government's so-called "second wave" of industrial reforms.

Speaking to the New South Wales Labor Council, she urged union leaders to mobilise their
membership against attacks on awards and conditions.

"Hopefully over the weeks ahead when the (planned industrial) legislation goes to the
Senate, not only do we have a Senate inquiry ... but beyond that I'd like to get to a position
where we could nationally organise a week of protest," Ms George said.

Telling a packed audience of union delegates that the "next few months are going to be
torrid for the movement", she said she would soon embark on a nation-wide speaking tour to
churches, women's groups, welfare organisations and the like about legislation planned by
Workplace Relations Minister Peter Reith.

"If they get away with reducing the industrial safety net, as they did in New Zealand, that
is then the excuse to hop in and lower employment and social security benefits," she said.

"New Zealand is the worst example of deregulation run amok, which has left an economy that
is a basket case and unemployment higher than we have in Australia.

"Each labor council and its affiliates should make a decision about what they think is
capable of being delivered, on a state-by-state basis, to maximise the pressure and the
focus."

Mr George said the coalition government was "hellbent on further deregulation of the labour
market".

"We're up against a pretty smart operator in Peter Reith and he knows that he can't sell to
the community the destruction of the award system and the destruction of the (Australian
Industrial Relations) Commission.

"He makes it very clear that this time around, to achieve their aims, they had to dress it
up in the pretence that all this is being done in the name of job creation."

However, she said she believed the Australian Democrats would stymie attempts in the Senate
to attack superannuation as an allowable matter in labour awards.

AAP dep/it

KEYWORD: GEORGE

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