manufacturing matters - october 2014

8/10/2019 Manufacturing Matters - October 2014

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ACAMPAIGNINGUNION

STATE SECRETARYS REPORTIt seems like its getting harder and harderto get ahead these days. More and more ofus are in insecure jobs. Wages are goingbackwards for the rst time in a generation.Unions are tied up in red tape and endlesspolitically motivated inquiries. Greedy CEOscan send good quality manufacturing jobs inshipbuilding, food and auto manufacturingoffshore without consequence. Our Liberalgovernments cut our services in health,education and training while at the sametime ask us to pay more.

In situations where working people are

being hammered from every direction, itseasy to feel powerless. And the reality forthe vast majority of Australians is that it canbe hard to make a difference individually.Sure individuals like Rupert Murdoch orGina Rinehart can inuence the debate, but

most people dont have $30billion dollars ora newspaper in every Australian State.

But if youre a union member you can feelproud that you are ghting back. Every day.Not by yourself of course. But with morethan 2 million other Australians chippingin a few bucks a week you are part of theonly resistance to the neoliberal agenda tosmash our communities and families in thename of free markets and corporate prots.

Ask yourself this: which other organisationghts for the economic interests of regular

Australians? There simply isnt any othermechanism powerful enough to allowregular working people to be represented inthe debate.

This is why Liberals and other conservativesput such a high priority on trying to separateworking people from unions by rubbishingthe work we do on behalf of our members.

Using the phrase union boss to describethe ofcials you elect. Conducting an inquiryinto trade union corruption that at the time

of going to print has asked for anotheryear because they havent found anything never mind its already cost taxpayers$60million.

Your union membership matters beyondthe workplace. A union is just anothername for a group of working Australiansgetting together in numbers to counteractthe inuence of the wealthy and powerfulin our society. Whether its at the workplaceor national level, you are part of the mosteffective and powerful voice for workingpeople the world has ever seen. Thatssomething every union member should beproud of.

In unitySteve McCartney

Ask yourselfthis: which otherorganisation ghtsfor the economicinterests of regular

Australians?

New ticket new start for riggers and scaffoldersThe AMWU and CFMEU have put to bed decades of dispute to cooperate on coverage

At a meeting in August, the jointleadership of the CFMEU WA andAMWU WA hammered out a historic deal onrepresentation for riggers and scaffolders.The deal, which will put an end to 20 yearsof confusion over coverage, will see thetwo unions cooperate on engineering and

construction sites throughout WesternAustralia.

In a joint statement State Secretaries MickBuchan of the CFMEU and Steve McCartneyof the AMWU said that workers will now havegreater, much stronger representation in theworkforce at a time when workers rights andconditions are under attack like never before.

The CFMEU and the AMWU recogniseriggers and scaffolders in Western Australiaare eligible for membership of both unionsdepending on the type of work being done.

Because of the nature of their work, manyof those rigger and scaffolder employees

are employed over time on different types ofwork. As a result, on one job, representationmight be by one Union, while on another

job representation might be by the otherUnion. Riggers and scaffolders frequentlymove between industries, which can createconfusion over which union covers them.

Weve listened to our members and this dealgives everyone certainty of representationacross Western Australia, Mr McCartneysaid.

At the end of the day we want to have a vastmajority of all riggers and scaffolders to haveaccess to strong union representation, MrBuchan said.

The Unions recognise that it is desirable for

rigger and scaffolder employees to be able tomake an application for membership of bothUnions at the one time to ensure they arerepresented by the most appropriate Union.

The Unions have agreed to engage inthe cooperative arrangements under thisagreement to protect and advance theinterests of rigger and scaffolders on allconstruction and engineering sites in Western

Australia.

Organising at Gorgonlast month

Unite the unions, unite the workers!


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AMWU Perth office: 121 Royal St, East PerthTelephone: (08) 9223 0800Fax:(08) 9225 4744

www.amwu.org.au

Like your union? your union!We have a couple of new initiatives to help

you stay in touch with whats going on in your

branch right around Western Australia.

Weve just launched our new App for Apple

and Android, which you can nd by searching

amwu wa at either store.

Its got the latest events, member news,

media, benets, campaigns and more. Its freetoo so get on it.

Weve also got a new Facebook page up and

running so head on over and like the AMWU

WA Branch to stay in touch.

We want your pictures and stories too - after

all you are the union. So send photos and

stories to [email protected] or

message our Facebook page.

Its all part of making sure we keep in touch

with our members and give you what you

want.

And if technology isnt your thing, well still

have printed copies of Manufacturing Matters

every couple of months!

AGC members stand rm for big Alcoa winIt took a lot of grit and determination but our AGC Alcoa Pinjarra members won the day

After 3 months of negotiations, over adozen meetings with management andve days of rolling stoppages, our membersat AGC Alcoa have won the pay rise theydeserve and kept their conditions.

Thanks to the tireless work of DelegatesLaurie Lingard and Zac Johnson andOrganiser Simon Rushworth, unity hasprevailed through rain, hail and would youbelieve the odd bit of management bullshit.

Misinformation was spread through companyemails, AGC members were targeted fordrug and alcohol tests on return to workafter a morning on the grass (all members

passed) and the police were even called atone stage. No doubt that nal action was abit of an embarrassment to management asthe coppers left after nding nothing to seehere.

Through it all our members backed eachother and won what they set out to achieve- an above ination pay rise and uncappedseverance pay.

AGC recently received big contracts withChevron, Yara, Barrick Gold and Woodsidebut wanted those who do the heavy lifting on

the ground to take a pay cut!

State Secretary Steve McCartney said it wasa great victory for manufacturing workers thatwould benet the whole industry.

The hard work of our members is whatgenerates prots for companies like AGC.Our members understand their value andthey deserve every penny of this hard wonpay rise.

Rally for Australian jobs and opportunitiesBlue Collar Unions rallied outside the Duxton to stand up for local skills and jobs for our kids

We had a solid turnout from across theunions at a rally for local jobs outsidethe Australian Mines and Metals AssociationsSkilled Migration Conference at the Duxtonon September 16 (AMMA - a union for bigbusiness).

Assistant Immigration Minister MichaeliaCash was speaking to the Conference toadvertise how much easier the Liberals aremaking it to bring in temporary overseasworkers - and how much less they can bepaid than Australian workers.

Senator Cash avoided the rally, but unionmembers and leaders made their points

clear. We will not accept a two-tiered systemof employment in this country that strips rightsfrom temporary workers and makes themcompletely dependent on their employerwhile undercutting the opportunities for local

jobs and skill development. It is a recipe forexploitation for ANYONE who works for aliving.

As AMWU State President Tony Hall toldthe crowd We will not stand by while localworkers are denied training opportunities onBarrow Island and in the CBD and we wont

stand by while vulnerable workers on visasare exploited and ripped off.

State President Tony Hall makesthe case for local jobs to the rally


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ACAMPAIGNINGUNION

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But as of January 1 2014, AMWUmembership also gives you...

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FUNERAL BENEFITUp to $5000 per nancial member*

*Please read Product Disclosure Statement for full terms and conditions, available atwww.coverforce.com.au/amwu.Insurance unfortunately unavailable to Retired Members.

Join today | 1300 732 698 | amwu.org.au |WA BranchPhone App


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MWU Perth office: 121 Royal St, East Perthephone: (08) 9223 0800

x:(08) 9225 4744

ww.amwu.org.au

5

Unionwins!

Coates losepay cut bidCoates Hire has been given a slap

after they tried to boost their bottom

line at our members expense.

Rather than investing in productivity

improvements Coates wanted to take

the low road cutting $6.5million

from employees remuneration by

going back on the existing EBA!

Now the law says employees must

agree by secret ballot if the company

wants to renege on an agreement

and they tried all the scare tactics in

the book. Jobs will be lost!, Well

lose contracts! they said, but our

members werent buying it.

We had great leadership from ourCoates delegates right around

Australia, including Justin Clarkson

from WA, who kept employees

informed of what the company was

trying to do through union phone hook

ups and mass emails.

Despite some pretty grubby tactics

from Coates, such as targetting

employees individually and failing to

ensure every worker could vote, in

the end the result spoke for itself. 58

per cent of all employees voted the

change down. We have no doubt this

result would have been higher, but

unfortunately Coates substandard

ballot provisions meant as many as

30 per cent of employees, such as

eld services workers, missed out on

having their say.

The solidarity displayed by our Coates

members, with many taking part in

their rst union action, puts us in good

stead for when we come to renegotiatethe nationwide EBA due in 2016.

Big EBA winat KomatsuWe are pleased to report that after

nearly 4 months of negotiations, 3

weeks of stoppages, 12 negotiation

meetings and hours of tireless work

from our delegates and organisers,

our members have won a great dealat Komatsu in Welshpool.

While the mining construction boom

might be winding down, Komatsu

has locked in long term contracts

with mining companies right around

WA. Without the hard work our eld

services and workshop members, no

one would make a cent so we think

they deserve every penny!

New deal forTWPS at Colliepower stationIt took a lot of determination

but in the end our members

got the result they wanted

After 3 weeks on the grass, we are pleased to

report our Transeld-Worley Power Services

members success in changing their EBA at

Collie Power Station to prevent managementsabuse of emergency overtime, which was

being used for routine work without extra pay.

This dispute was never about money. It was

about management respecting our members

and realising that workers and their unions

have a legitimate right to have input into

workplace practices.

We even went down to the TWPS regional

ofce in Bunbury to publicly put the heat on the

company.

It wasnt easy but our members, many of

whom joined a union for the rst time, got over

the line and they have each other to thank

(plus South-West organiser Michael Salt,

who worked tirelessly during the three week

stoppage.)

Once again we would like to thank the Collie

community who were 100% supportive the

whole way through, and the ETU who were

great partners as usual.

Solidarity on the picket in rain, hail or shine


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MWU Perth office: 121 Royal St, East Perthephone: (08) 9223 0800

x:(08) 9225 4744

ww.amwu.org.au

Why does my boss want me to have an ABN?

JAMES asks: My boss has asked me

to obtain an ABN. Since then I have

done so, but I dont understand why

I need to have an ABN if I am working

for his business. Is he just trying to

cover his arse as I am not currently onthe books but I really want to be. What

should I do? I do not want to own my

own business at this stage of my life.

Should I be fnding another job?

James, the cynic in me says youre

absolutely right when you say your

boss wants you to get an ABN number

because he wants to avoid paying yousuperannuation, holiday pay, sick pay

etc. if he puts you on the books. (Just as

a side issue, hes already done the wrong

thing by paying you cash in hand.)

Sham contracting is the term used todescribe what hes trying to do employ

you as an independent contractor,complete with your ABN number, when

really youre an employee and as such

should be paid the entitlements owed to

employees.

A true independent contractor (for

example someone who runs their own

plumbing business):

Is usually hired for a specic job or time

period.

Has a high level of control over how thework is done and can also can hire other

people to assist.

Pay their own tax, GST and

superannuation.

Can turn down work or offer an

alternative time when work is done

Agree to the hours required to do the

job.

Has an ABN and submits invoices.

On the other hand, employees:

Have their work directed and controlled

by their boss.

Have work set and standard hours(although casual hours can vary from

week to week).

Are told where to work.

Have tax deducted from their pay by

their employer.

Should receive the appropriate

superannuation, and paid leave from

their employer (or casual loadings if

applicable).

The big test is really how much autonomy

do you have? If you have to follow a

roster, and work where, when and howyoure told then chances are you are

actually an employee and the suggestionyou get an ABN is an attempt on the part

of your employer to save money by not

paying you your entitlements and that

is unlawful.

If youre not sure of your arrangements

and need some advice, give the AMWU

helpdesk a call today.

This article was frst published at

workinglife.org.auon 03 October 2014

Machine Gun Preacher inspires AMWU deloSam Childers compassionleft a lasting impression ondelegate Lorne OLoughlinIn August we received a visit fromMachine Gun Preacher Sam Childers(yep the same one from the GerardButler movie), who was in Australia toraise money for his charity work in Africa.

Sam grew up in a working classPennsylvania family and developeda knack for trouble at an early age,culminating in becoming a shotgunner

an armed guard for drug dealers.

After a few close calls, Sam renouncedhis life of crime for the Church anddedicated his life to helping orphans inSouthern Sudan.

Sam is also a union man his Dad wasin the US Ironworkers Union for over55 years until the day he died and Samhimself was a union member when heworked as a crane driver.

Everywhere I go its about giving amessage to inspire people to get up andght for something, Sam said.

I ght for the rights of people to have

the freedom to live their lives whateverthat means to them.

AMWU delegate and rigger LorneOLoughlin caught Sams Australiantour at his local Dawesville church andwas so impressed he decided to makea $1000 donation on behalf of his familyand the AMWU.

I was really taken with his success inhelping in an area where no one else

seemed to be able to make a difference,Lorne said.

Despite his past, he had a good setof principles, which included solidunion values so I made the decision tocontribute to his cause.

You can read more about Sam Childersat www.machinegunpreacher.org/

Not your average preacher: Lorne found inspiration in Sams work


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ACAMPAIGNINGUNION

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manufacturing matters - october 2014

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