Chris White Online

Australian Left Renewal Conference – from global crisis to green future – May 29-30, 2010, University of Technology Sydney Building 2 Broadway, Sydney
Democratic responses to the social and ecological failure of global capitalism.
Alliances between environmentalists and unionists that show the way forward.
The Left and its strategic direction 12 Workshops and 4 Participatory Forums.
International speakers – [...]

The recent tragic loss of life and house fires due to a deregulated labour market in the insulation industry and poor health and safety must not be repeated nationally.
But DPM Gillard is ruthlessly pushing ahead with her lower national OHS ‘harmonisation’ model approved December 2009, despite major union criticism (see earlier blogs).
One feature of [...]

YOUNG INDIAN WORKER SACKED ON HONEYMOON
ManiMan sacked, ripped off and now facing deportation after going overseas to get married.
Mani Saravanan came to Australia on a controversial 457 visa to work as a fabricator for Haldilka Nominees Pty Ltd trading as Ironbark Fabrications in Moree. Mani was a hard worker with a spotless record, he [...]

International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the economic, political and social achievements of women past, present and future.
Each year on March 8th, people across the globe come together to honor women and to work for their safety and equality.

www.internationalwomensday.com.
Happy International Women’s Day 2010!
On International Women’s Day, this official minute from the [...]

For almost two years the Australian oil rig workers – members of the MUA-AWU Offshore Alliance – have been trying to seal a union deal with an iconic Danish shipping giant Maersk. But Maersk refuses to talk to the union – and favours workers who are non-union.
Support the Australian union members now campaigning for [...]

BOOK REVIEW: Andy Alcock
“Framework of Flesh – Builders’ Labourers battle for Health & Safety”
by Humphrey McQueen (2009) Ginninderra Press (Port Adelaide)
I am very interested in this topic, because at an early age, I was confronted with the hazardous circumstances in which building workers were forced to accept.
For most of his working life, my father [...]

Stop criminalisation of International Solidarity!
Stop State Terror in Colombia!
Saturday, March 6th, 7:30pm
Garema Place, ACT Canberra
A documentary on the current struggles of the Colombian people will be screened, introduced by Colombia solidarity activists.
Followed by the controversial documentary that Uribe does not want you to see.
At the time Colombian President Alvaro Uribe agrees to accept [...]

Abbott tells corporate leaders that WorkChoices was not an economic mistake, not all bad, but politically a mistake.
WorkChoices was necessary as regulation for unlimited freedom for profit making and undermining unions.
Turnbull was to hide WorkChoices 2. With Abbott the contest is back in the open.
But the Murdoch press weekly has propaganda “Abbott [...]

TRAGIC BRISBANE DEATH RINGS BELL FOR URGENT CHANGES IN WATERFRONT SAFETY 21 Feb 2010
As the family of dock worker Brad Gray mourn, co-workers and the Maritime Union of Australia are demanding overdue action to prevent a repeat of the fatality.
Brad was tragically killed on Saturday just before
3pm in an horrific workplace injury while working the [...]