Advance Australia Fair - Building Sustainability, Justice and Peace
Workshop - Going it alone: Howard's 21st Century Australian workplace
Saturday 30th July 2005

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Peter Marshall

President, Victorian Trades Hall Council and
President, Firefighters' Union

Thanks for the introduction.

First of all that was a big rally and congratulations to all who were responsible for the day. It wasn’t just unions but it included a lot of community groups. We need not only to educate but to let the politicians know that this is an important issue and they need to think very carefully about what they are doing because the consequences could be that they may not be in their position come the next election.

I will address a number of issues about ‘going it alone’ - imagine Australia without unions. The firefighters union is not special, it’s like the other unions. I had the pleasure of speaking to fifteen new recruit firefighters the other day, and they asked how the new industrial relations laws will affect them. With my involvement in Trades Hall I am acutely aware of what’s facing the trade union movement. It is probably one of our greatest challenges but its also one of our greatest opportunities. In articulating to the recruits on how it will affect them I was able to reflect on exactly what’s up for grabs. Essentially everything is up for grabs.

• I was able to say to the firefighters that currently they have:
   security of employment through a no contracting out clause,
   overtime rates guaranteed and enshriend, legally enforceable,
   set rosters,
   pressing necessity leave,
   maternity leave,
   paternity leave,
   travelling expenses,
   guaranteed protective clothing to an agreed standard,
   penalty rates for a night shift, 30% and 10.25% on top of that,
   the right to consulation by the employer clear structure and progression path,
   a consultation about the type of amenities that they have at firestations,
   guaranteed rest periods,
   annual leave, long service leave,
   rostered hours,
   38 hour week,
   minimum staffing numbers to ensure they can do the job and to ensure their own safety,
   meal allowances,
   dry cleaning their uniform allowances,
   comprehensive health and safety agreement,
   transmission of business if they sell it off,
   bereavement leave,
   carers leave, sick leave and it goes on.

There is clearly a lot up for grabs.

To imagine Australia without unions we need to understand the role of unions. I think that collectively we have done really well in achieving the outcomes and meeting the aspirations of our members but I think we’ve been very poor in communicating those outcomes to the rest of the population. People who are not part of collectives, not a member of their union, still benefit from those achievements and certainly they aid the security, the family life balance that comes about through test cases from the unions and collectively from these bodies. Unions are about meeting the aspirations of Australian workers, but it’s more than that, it’s about our very social fabric. Can you imagine an individual trying to renegotiate all the things that I listed on their own? The government has guaranteed you four at the moment, they may throw in seven. How is an individual going to exercise any bargaining power, any ability to be able to get the employer to agree to those things? It is nonsensical and it simply will not work. As Mordy said, you want the job, you sign the agreement. You don’t sign the agreement, you don’t get the job.

We’re talking about what is up for grabs and we need to communicate that in a very real and meaningful way. If we are able to communicate what is really up for grabs, even the most individualistic self-centred person will jump on board because they will not want to lose these things.

In the history of the Fire Fighting Union, there have been many challenges over a long period of time. They contracted out work and through the Union’s campaign we were able to return that work to the workers. That was not just in the interests of the firefighters, but in the interests of the community. Pre-1940 a firefighting officer’s standard working week was 106 hours. Between 1940 and 1950 it was 96 hours. In 1950 we gained a 40 hour week and we’re now on a 30 hour week. Those achievements had been significant and won against significant odds.

I’ve been a trade union official for twelve years now but I’ve been a firefighter for twenty-two years. I wasn’t involved in the union movement when there were laws that could put people in jail, when they didn’t have a right to strike. I’ve come in to a fairly luxurious environment and that’s all about to change. And certainly that’s not the way that we want our society to be.

When I spoke to 36 new recruits coming into an industry with very good conditions, won by the previous generation and the current generation of unionists and firefighters and passed on to us, it was an opportunity to educate them and get them to pass on the message as to where we are. But it requires a broader approach, how we actually tackle it. The trade unions collectively are very clever people, very talented people and you can see the effect of the campaign to date. It has been a very measured campaign and the message is the one that needs to be sent, to expose the reforms that are baring down on us. Certainly here at Trades Hall we have been very active in preparing further ways to ensure that the community is educated and establishing links with community groups. Victorian Trades Hall Council sits at the community round table with VCOSS and a whole range of bodies that represent social security, legal aid, churches, etc. This
is a very powerful forum. Because what we are looking at here is not just an attack on trade unions, but an attack on the way we live, our way of life. It is just not the Australian way. People who will be carved off on to their own will not be able to survive without accepting what is put on the table before them.

The trade union movement’s been around for a long time and will continue to be around but you can’t rest upon your laurels. John’s right. If we look overseas we see that it’s just a repeat. It’s happened in the UK, it’s happened in New Zealand, and certainly we do not want an Americanised system where you have very low wage increases. Certainly that is not what Australia is about. We need to get that message across very strongly. There will be another rally leading up to the legislation, there will be a delegates’ forum here in Victoria. Internationally the ACTU is making other trade union bodies around the world aware of the behaviour of the Australian Government. They’ve launched legal action in the international court, and there are proceedings within our domestic court systems. They are important prongs of the counter attack.

Ultimately the legislation will be put on the table. The only thing that’s going to stop the legislation impacting on each and very one of us is people power. The house of review is not longer in the hands of those who will review it. But like everyone else, they have a vested interest and their vested interest is staying in power. They’ve already gone a bit wobbly because they haven’t communicated their message very strongly and the trade union movement has been extremely successful to date in communicating what this is really all about.

As president of Trades Hall I’m in a privileged position of being able to see the good work of the affiliates around the table. It’s even more privileged because while we’re critical of our parliamentary wings they’ve been significant in their attempts in trying to assist in minimising the impact. But I am also a realist and understand that politicians are politicians. Our fight is not just about exposing what the impact of the reforms will be, it’s making our own side, the political wing of the labour movement commit to undoing the damage.

Imagining Australia without unions and going it alone is a very frightening thing when you put it in perspective. And that’s the message we need to get across.

Thank you

Firefighters' Union website

Victorian Trades Hall Council website

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