About
Chris White has been living in Canberra since 2005.
He has been writing critically against WorkChoices, the labour law supressing the right to strike, the repression of building and construction workers, on the new 2008 China labour laws and industrial relations.
He worked for the SA unions for 27 years. First as an industrial officer for the Australian Workers Union SA branch. Then he was for 10 years research officer/industrial advocate for the LHMU, then the Miscellaneous Workers Union SA branch.
In 1985 he was elected Assistant Secretary of the United Trades and Labor Council. Then in 1998 hye was elected Secretary UTLC until 2001.
He was on the ACTU executive for 15 years.
He represented unions on government SA Industrial Relations and Occupational Health and Safety and Workers’ Compensation and Rehabilitation Commisions and social justice and employment committees.
from 1998 to 2002 he was a Director and Trustee of SA Statewide Superannuation Trust and United Superannuation Pty Ltd. He was active in Socially Responsible Investment decisions.
For 10 years he was on the board of the SA Working Womens Centre.
For 15 years he was Chair of the Junction Theatre company. For 6 years he was a Ministerial Arts Board member on the State Theatre Company.
He was awarded a Centenary Medal Commonwealth Honour for contributions to unions and the community.
From 2003-2005 he was a Board member SA Housing Trust Board
In 2002 he was on the Offenders Aid and Rehabilitation Services (OARS): prison rehabilitation and restorative justice.
For 30 years he was active in the SA East Timor Association and now Patron.
Since 1974 he has been a member of the ALP and with SA unions organising in state and federal election campaigns.
He has been active in the ACTU Your Rights at Work Worth Fighting For campaign.
Your rights at Work Canberra
He was a Post Graduate Research PhD scholar 2003-2006 School of Law, Flinders University researching ‘The right to strike’, but for personal reasons did not complete his thesis.
He was a radical student activist, editor of ON DIT and Secretary of the Student’s Union and completed a Law degree and Arts (Honours Politics) in 1972. He then worked for a year as a law tutor at the University of Adelaide law school before his career with the unions.
Apart from his research, he now also works part-time as Industrial Officer for ASMOF in the ACT, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation.
He is an advocate and consultant on workforce and social justice issues.
