Meeting held : 06 December 2007
Chair of Meeting: The President, Comrade. Sandra Moait
Location of the meeting : Trades Hall Auditorium, 4 Goulburn St Sydney
UNIONS NSW MEETING MINUTES
MEETING HELD THURSDAY 6TH DECEMBER 2007
IN THE TRADES HALL AUDITORIUM
AT 4 GOULBURN STREET, SYDNEY, AT 6:06 PM
The President Com. S. Moait occupied the Chair.
PRESENT: - J. Robertson [Secretary] M. Lennon [Assistant Secretary],
C. Christodoulou, M. Thistlethwaite, A. Tattersall (Deputy Assistant Secretaries).
OPENING
OF THE
MEETING: The President, Com. S. Moait opened the meeting by recognising the traditional owners of the land on which the meeting was being held the Gadigal People of the Eora Nation.
MINUTES: -
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson moved: -
"That the minutes as circulated be received".
Com. M. Want seconded.
CARRIED
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson moved: -
"That the minutes as circulated be adopted".
Com. B. Tubner seconded.
CARRIED
CREDENTIALS
From The Australian Workers' Union, Greater New South Wales Branch appointing:- L. Heaney in place of R. Collison.
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson moved: -
"That the credentials be received and the delegates welcomed".
Com. M. Want seconded.
CARRIED
APOLOGIES
Apologies were received and accepted for: - B. Smith, A. Ferguson, B. Holmes, J. Kiejda, M. O'Halloran, L. Hankinson, J. Hannaford, J. Diamond.
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson moved: -
"That the apologies be received and accepted".
Com. M. Want seconded.
CARRIED
EXECUTIVE BUSINESS
CORRESPONDENCE
1. From the NSW Teachers Federation:- Advising Unions NSW of a further restructure of TAFE NSW by the Department of Education and Training entitled "TAFE in the 21st Century". The Federation said that as part of the process a consultation paper was released on 27th November containing a number of proposals. The consultation process was set to finish on 14 December and the next stage released in February 2008. The Federation said that both the short period of time and the time of year were of concern to their members. They said that whilst the Director General of TAFE says that these are just proposals, managers out in Institutes were telling their members that these changes would go ahead. There are ramifications not just for their members and their students, but also for members of other unions, apprentices and trainees. The proposals seek significant changes to TAFE Curriculum Centres which would see the loss of much of the educational expertise in this area, and development of curriculum, teaching and learning resources made the responsibility of already overworked teachers. Such changes will lessen the ability of TAFE NSW to effectively liaise with industry and to develop courses that meet industry and community needs. They said that these proposals also seek to distribute distance education throughout TAFE and to effectively undermine the role of our distance education arm at Strathfield, OTEN. The TAFE central equity units have also been targeted in this process, with a proposal to mainstream their work, under the guise of `equity is everybody's business'. The Federation said they were aware that such changes frequently lead to equity being nobody's business, and their teachers and Special Program Co-ordinators were concerned that support students in the equity areas of disability, multicultural and gender, would be decreased. The Federation sought the support of Unions NSW and its affiliates in raising concern about the proposed restructure with the Minister for Education and Training, and to ask that any changes to Curriculum Centres, OTEN and Equity Units still retain viable central support structures, no job losses and no shift of workload to teachers and institute staff. They also asked that other interested unions involve themselves in the change process and respond appropriately to the consultation process, including the Federation's concerns.
Com. J. Robertson moved the Executive Recommendation:-
"That the correspondence be received and Unions NSW raise its concern about the proposed restructure of TAFE with the Minister for Education as requested.
Further, Unions NSW seek other interested unions to also raise their concerns."
Com. B. Johnson seconded the resolution.
CARRIED
2. From the Construction Forestry Mining & Energy Union, Construction & General Division, New South Wales Branch:- regarding the exploitation of 457 Visa workers from China and the Cook Islands. The union said that two workers who had signed Employment Contracts in China to work in Australia for a period of 4 years and provided for payments of $50.00 per week living expenses, $500.00 per month to their families in China, provision of meals and accommodation while in Australia. These two workers were employed for 14 months when their employer sacked them and evicted them from their lodgings. The Union advised that on December 5th they had reached a favourable settlement with the Employer and that while there was a non-disclosure clause in the Deed of Agreement, they would state that the two workers had sustained no financial loss under the terms of the agreement. The CFMEU also advised that a decision in the court case which they had brought against Manuel and Liesl Puruto after their member Sam Kautai was brutally bashed whilst working for this employer. The union represented Sam and fellow Cook Island worker Rima Kainuku workers who were claiming non payment of wages and entitlements from Puruto. They advised that the decisions of the court were in favour of these two workers and that their employer had been sentenced to two years gaol for assaulting Sam Kautai. The CFMEU thanked Unions NSW and affiliates for their support during this long running dispute.
Com. J. Robertson moved the Executive Recommendation:-
"That the correspondence be received and the CFMEU be congratulated for the success in their campaign on behalf of exploited workers from China and the Cook Islands.
Further, that the CFMEU's thanks be forwarded to affiliates."
Com. P. McClelland seconded the resolution.
Com. K. McWhinney spoke.
CARRIED
3. From the Public Service Association of New South Wales and the Rail Tram and Bus Union, New South Wales Branch:- expressing their concern that the NSW Government was losing touch with the interests of working families. The Unions said that it was recently reported that the new Director General of the Department of Premier and Cabinet had received a 10% salary increase to $484,600, the CEO of Macquarie Generation a 9.8% salary increase to $624,424, the CEO of RailCorp received an 8.1% salary increase and the head of the Asset Management Division of RailCorp had received a 30.6% salary increase. They said that these increases came on top of the politicians awarding themselves a 6.7% salary increase earlier this year. The unions said that at the same time the Government had told Departments to strictly adhere to its public sector wages policy when it came to employee wage increases. The policy states "any increase to employee related expenses including wages, allowances, superannuation, etc., exceeding 2.5 per cent per annum must be funded through employee related reform measures and cost savings." They said that Macquarie Bank at the same time was predicting underlying inflation of 3.75% by March 2008 and that if this prediction was accurate, a 2.5% wage policy means a cut in real wages for workers. The Unions said it would appear that the New South Wales Government had one rule for workers and another for senior bureaucrats. They said that whilst they understood the Government's present tight fiscal position, they believed that the responsibility for achieving a reasonable budget outcome should be shared by all members of the public service and not just the workers. It was also important that any wage increases maintained real wages, which account for movements in the increase in the cost of living whilst at the same time staff cuts mean workers are working longer hours which were not being recognised or rewarded. Both the PSA and RTBU requested Unions NSW arrange a meeting with the Premier of New South Wales to seek to have the wages policy renegotiated to ensure a fairer policy which applies to the whole NSW public sector, not just the bosses.
Com. J. Robertson moved the Executive Recommendation:-
"That the correspondence be received and Unions NSW supports the call from both the PSA and the RTBU that the government immediately review its unrealistic and inequitable wages policy and that a meeting with the Premier be arranged regarding this matter as a matter of urgency."
Com. S. Turner seconded the resolution.
Com. M. Morey spoke.
CARRIED
4. From Workers Radio Sydney 88.9FM:- advising Unions NSW and affiliates that given the success of the Your Rights At Work campaign and the defeat of John Howard, they would be broadcasting their final show on Friday, 7th December between 6am and 9a.m. They said that Workers Radio Sydney was set up more than 2 years ago to support the YR@W campaign by providing timely information to union and community activists, promote YR@W events, and support union members in their struggles against the Howard Government's radical WorkChoices laws. By educating and activating the community, Workers Radio had played a vital role in the defeat of Howard and his radical IR laws. They also brought unions together and fostered greater co-operation and mutual assistance The WRS Editorial Committee thanked Unions NSW, the various unions and community organisations who had provided financial support, and all their listeners and regular contributors who made the program a hub for trade union organising. They also thanked Craig Bulley, in his role as presenter/producer, for successfully running the program. As their final big show is being held on Friday 7th December, WRS asked Unions NSW and affiliates to send a representative or to phone in between 6am and 9am to highlight the successes of the YR@W campaign, the role of WRS, and their union's plans for the future.
Com. J. Robertson moved the Executive Recommendation:-
"That the correspondence be received and Unions NSW congratulate all those involved in the success of Workers Radio Sydney over the last two years, in particular Presenter/Producer Craig Bulley.
Further, Unions NSW encourage affiliates to participate where possible in tomorrow's final program."
Com. T. Volmer seconded and spoke to the resolution.
CARRIED
5. From the New South Wales Nurses' Association:- congratulating Unions NSW on their mo growing efforts during Movember. They said that unions had a proud history of participating in campaigns that affect working people outside the workplace and that Movember was an important example of this. The Association said that at the beginning of the campaign they had asserted that they would be able to grow better Mo's and to raise more money than the boys of Unions NSW. They said that their team had managed to raise $10,383.00 over the past month and that they were particularly proud of this achievement.
Com. J. Robertson moved the Executive Recommendation:-
"That the correspondence be received and the Nurses' Association be congratulated on their efforts in raising $10,383.00 for the Movember campaign, an amount almost equivalent to Unions NSW."
Com. K. Sullivan seconded the resolution.
CARRIED
NOTICE OF RULE CHANGE:
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson, advised that in accordance with Rule 40 he gave notice of a rule change to be considered at the Annual General Meeting in the following form:
Rule 40: after the words Unions NSW add the words "or a special meeting called in accordance with Rule 32".
REPORTS
R@W Campaign
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson said there were a number of campaigners from the Rights At Work Groups present tonight and they would like to address the meeting tonight.
Linda Everingham spoke on behalf of the Lindsay Group, Gemma Burrows the Central Coast Group, Judy King, Bennelong and Julia Armitt, North Sydney. They all thanked those involved in the campaign in their respective seats for their efforts. They outlined details of their campaigns including special events and memorable moments. They also thanked Unions NSW officers, in particular John Robertson, Adam Kerslake, Mary Yaager and Matt Thistlethwaite for their support.
In closing, John Robertson noted that there were delegates from other Rights At Work Groups present and asked them to stand so they could be acknowledged by delegates. He offered his personal thanks to all those who tirelessly worked on the campaign in all the Rights At Work Groups across the state. He said that the work of the groups was pivotal to the success of the campaign and showed what a strong, committed grass roots campaign can achieve.
Com. J. Robertson moved:-
"That the reports be received."
Com. B. Johnson seconded.
CARRIED
Com. J. Robertson moved:-
"That the reports be adopted."
Com. K. Sullivan seconded.
CARRIED
The Secretary, Com. J. Robertson thanked affiliates for all their work during the year and wished everyone a Merry Christmas and looked forward to seeing them in the New Year.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1. What Women Need - Conference for Centenary of
International Women's Day
10 and 11th March, 2008
Trades Hall Auditorium (To be confirmed)
Further information is available from Amanda Tattersall at
a.tattersall@unionsnsw.org.au
2. Last Meeting for 2007
Tonight's meeting is the last meeting for 2007.
Thursday Night Meetings will resume on 7th February, 2008
COUNCIL ADJOURNED AT 7:14PM
President: ____________________________________
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