May Day call puts pollies on ballot box notice

May Day acknowledged working families.

by Kerri Carr

Federal politicians were given notice at the Sydney May Day rally on May 7 that their jobs will be reasonably insecure in the next year or so.

ACTU President Sharan Burrow said the Howard Government had "turned its back on working Australians and their families", speaking about industrial relations legislation.

"We know this law is wrong, spiteful, and a free kick to big business."

"These laws will not last," she said.

With a federal election expected in 2007, Ms Burrow said: "While we have a democratic nation we have work to do."

She called on workers to talk to people about the effect of the laws and to remain active in the campaign, attending all delegates and rallies.

"We will take back this country, see the laws torn up and replaced with [fair laws], with the right to collectively bargain at the heart of it," she said.

Ms Burrow spoke of the insecurity created by the new industrial relations law.

"With interest rates rising and the cost of living increasing, you can't pretend people can cope if they don't know if they are going to have a job or if they will be getting penalty rates."

She spoke about the proposed Independent Contractors Act that will see more workers forced to negotiate their own rates rather than have rates set on a collective basis.

"It's a licence to drive a contract war -- which means a drive to the bottom," she said.

She told how Optus field technicians had been sacked but would be re-employed as independent contractors on $15,000 to $20,000 less per year.

She said they would be forced to pay their own superannuation, workers compensation, public safety insurance and manage their plant and equipment.

"That's the power of the Howard Government. Permanency, as we know it, is under threat."

"What this government is really saying is working Australians don't mean much to the Howard Government."

Ms Burrow said workers would not hand a lesser standard of working conditions to their children than their parents had handed to them.

"We [the union movement] will not sit back and watch people sacked unfairly," she said.

"We will be there to stand up for working people."

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Last Modified: 18 May 2006