VIC: Nurses workplace community rallies

Nurses, midwives, their families, patients and supporters are invited to attend the following Community rallies to save and improve nurse/midwife ratios

Royal Women’s Hospital/Royal Melbourne Hospital - Sunday 4 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Eastern – Maroondah Hospital - Monday 5 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Southern – Clayton Monash Medical Centre - Monday 5 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Sale Hospital -  Tuesday 6 December, 3 pm – 4 pm
Barwon – Geelong Hospital -  Tuesday 6 December, 11 am – 1.30 pm
Colac Hospital  -  Tuesday  6 December, 3 pm – 4 pm
Latrobe Regional Health -  Tuesday 6 December, 11 am – 1.30 pm
The Alfred Hospital - Wednesday 7  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Peninsula – Frankston Hospital – Wednesday 7  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Western General Hospital – Footscray - Thursday 8  December,  12 pm – 2 pm
Sunshine Hospital - Thursday 8  December,  12 pm – 2 pm
Ballarat Base Hospital  - Friday 9  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Wodonga Base Hospital – Friday 9  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Mildura Base Hospital - Friday 9  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Royal Children’s Hospital - Saturday 10  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Wangaratta Hospital - Saturday 10  December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Northern Hospital – Epping / Broadmeadows - Monday 12 December, 11 am – 1.30 pm
Seymour Base Hospital – Monday 12 December, 3 pm – 4 pm
Warnambool Base Hospital / Lyndoch – Monday 12 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Austin Health /Mercy Heidelberg – Tueday 13 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Orbost Regional Hospital - Wednesday 14 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre - Wednesday 14 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
St Vincents Hospital - Wednesday 14 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Eastern – Box Hill Hospital - Friday 16 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Southern Health – Dandenong / Casey Hospitals - Friday 16 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Werribee Mercy - Saturday 17 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Goulburn Valley Health - Saturday 17 December, 12 pm – 2 pm
Tweddle Child and Family Health Service - Monday 19 December, 12 pm – 2 pm

ACTU: Apprentice pay increase

06 December, 2011 | Media Release

Federal Government support for a pay increase for apprentices is a good first step towards improving the appalling apprentice completion rate.

ACTU President Ged Kearney said unions were pleased the Government had recognised that low pay was a major contributor the apprentice drop-out rate of 50%.

Unions also welcome the commitment to lift training standards, through more funding for mentoring and support services and action to harmonise standards across the country.

“This is a good first step to address the currently poor completion rate for apprentices,” Ms Kearney said.

“Unions look forward to a review of apprentice wages by Fair Work Australia next year to address the appallingly low wages trainees currently receive,” Ms Kearney said.

“We also welcome the review announced today to investigate targeting employer incentive payments to ensure bosses are using them for genuine training, and not simply to subsidise wages.

“The current completion rates for Australian apprenticeships are unacceptably low at an average of 48% and the only way to boost the number of skilled workers in our community is through better wages and training.

“Apprentices have told us that the poor remuneration is a key reason they don’t complete their apprenticeships.”

Ms Kearney said training and skill development should be a shared responsibility between Government, industry and unions, individual employers and apprentices and trainees themselves,” she said.

“Unions have previously called on the Government to consider the panel recommendation for an employer contribution scheme to support the funding of a steamlined training system and are disappointed this has not been taken further. Employers must take their share of responsibility in ensuring as a nation we can meet our future skill needs through apprenticeships and traineeships.

“The resources sector in particular needs to improve its support for apprentices, with a major Government report last year calling for the sector to significantly increase the number of apprentices it employs in order to match its share of trade employment and reduce its reliance on temporary migration.”

Ms Kearney said unions also welcomed the announcement of the new Australian Apprenticeships Ambassadors, which aim to boost the status and profile of apprenticeships.

CELAC established

Leaders from 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean on Saturday approved 22 documents, officially signing into effect the formation of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) as the new leading regional bloc.

The leaders also elected Chile's President Sebastian Pinera as temporary president of CELAC until the group's next summit, which is scheduled to be held in Chile next year.

Concluding two days of summit talks, the upbeat group of Latin American leaders praised the formal constitution of CELAC as a historic milestone in regional development and pledged to remain united in order to gain maximum power and influence as a block in world affairs.

"Unity is the road ahead. A lot of people think that you can be faster when you move alone, but the truth is that together we will come much further," said Pinera in closing remarks."This 21st Century will be the century of Latin America and the Caribbean," said Pienera, adding he would take on leadership of the forum with "a lot of responsibility and a lot of hope" and called on the region's leaders to look toward the future with vision.

Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's president and summit host, hailed the formal establishment of CELAC as a forum where Latin American and Caribbean nations would be able to hold meetings independently from other world forums and maintain their regional sovereignty in front of pressure by world powers such as the United States.

"No more interference, enough is enough. We have to take shape as a center of the world power and demand respect for all of us as community and for each one of our countries," said Chavez.

With the creation of CELAC, which includes all countries in the Americas except the United States and Canada, Latin American leaders want to establish a forum similar to that of the Organization of American States, but without the political influence of U.S. foreign policy.

Pinera called on member countries to join forces and make quality education possible for CELAC countries' 600 million people, fight against poverty and multiply investments in science and technology.

Among the 22 documents signed is the key document named "The Declaration of Caracas," which calls for a joint action plan to be established for CELAC along with the relevant working programs and the procedures for the operative work of the group.

ALP: full marriage equality vote

A 10,000-strong crowd converged on the Labor Party National Conference to demand marriage equality.

It was an incredible moment.

As the crowd rolled in, ALP delegates to the Conference voted in favour of a platform change proposed by Rainbow Labor. Now, for the first time, Labor party policy supports full marriage equality. The crowd went wild – thanking both grassroots campaigners like you and those brave individuals who have fought for this change from within.

Today’s change sends a message to all gay and lesbian Australians that finally our nation’s governing party considers their love and relationships equal.

But while today shows Australians have removed discrimination from their hearts, we cannot rest until we also remove it from our laws.

That’s why our focus now turns to the each and every MP in Parliament. Within months they will be debating whether or not to end marriage discrimination and when the legislation is introduced, the ALP will be allowed to vote with their conscience. We look to Tony Abbott’s Coalition to do the same. Many Liberal MPs believe that it’s not for the Government to limit the freedom of Australian adults to marry the one they love and our challenge is to make this a majority view.

Respected gay rights campaigner Rodney Croome told today’s crowd how, in his home state of Tasmania, his love was illegal until a few short years ago when homosexuality was decriminalised. He told the crowd that the impossible happened when these discriminatory laws were overturned, and Tasmania became the first state of Australia to support marriage equality.

Qantas Families’ Day

An Australia-wide action day will bring together Qantas airline workers and their supporters in a show of strength against plans to outsource jobs overseas.

The Qantas Families’ Day, which is taking place on 3 December, will see more than 600 volunteers and six national trade unions – including ITF affiliates the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), the Rail Tram and Bus Union and the Transport Workers’ Union of Australia (TWU) – distribute over 200,000 leaflets. Activists will also be spending the weekend lobbying the Australian government to protect skills and jobs in the country’s aviation industry.

In Australia, ITF president and MUA general secretary Paddy Crumlin, stated: “Today is about putting people first: workers and their families. Not profits, or cost cuts, or offshored profit centres. Instead the Qantas workers and the Australian unions, backed by our friends around the world, are laying out an alternative model, of the kind that keeps Qantas as an example of all that’s good about safe flying.”

Tony Sheldon, TWU general secretary, said: “The Qantas Families’ Day brings together Qantas workers and their Australian neighbours and friends to defend jobs and reject the ruthless cost cutting and offshoring that could leave them without work and the rest of us without a national airline.”

For more about Qantas Families Day see www.qantasfamilies.com/day.

Click here to visit the ITF’s campaign page.