Labour notes
The Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) has called on the Federal Government to scrap the Interim Building Industry Taskforce (IBIF) set up during the Cole Royal Commission. The demand follows revelations that the taskforce refuses to pursue employers who have underpaid workers by breaching federal awards and agreements. At a recent Senate Estimates Committee the taskforce said that it was aware of incidences of underpayments but it does not investigate employee entitlements. National Secretary of the CFMEU John Sutton said that it confirms what the union has thought since the body was formed: it is only interested in chasing unions and employees.* * * Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union staff at the Borallon Correctional Centre in Ipswich, Queensland have voted for strike action after their employer US multinational MTC insisted on cutting back sick leave entitlements. "MTC has an international reputation for tough bargaining with its workers and unions wherever they are based across the globe. At the same time as we are arguing with the company in Queensland correctional service officers employed by the same people in Canada are locked into tough negotiations in Ontario", LHMU Private Prisons Co-ordinator Ron Simon said.* * * Also in Queensland, 800 workers at Rockhampton City Council are considering taking industrial action over the council's failure to negotiate a new enterprise bargaining agreement. The council workers have not had a pay increase since January last year and the council made employees absorb last year's National Safety Net rise. "That is, after all, supposedly the purpose of EBAs — to provide pay rates and pay rises that are above the normal award rates and rises. The Howard Government and employers are always arguing that awards should only be a minimum. The Rockhampton City Council's current offer does not even cover last year's award rise, let alone provide for more than the supposed minimum, ASU Lead Organise Jenny Earl said.