WA Labor returned to government

Lisbeth Latham

Geoff Gallop's state Labor government held onto power in the February 26 Western Australian election, albeit with a reduced parliamentary majority. While there are still a number of seats undecided, the ALP's majority in the lower house looks likely to fall from 11 to nine seats.

Prior to the poll, it appeared that Labor's unpopularity may prevent it from returning to government. However, following a series of embarrassing Coalition policy releases — particularly the proposed $2 billion Kimberley-to-Perth canal plan — big business became increasingly unconfident in the Coalition's ability to deliver a stable and reliable government. This was reinforced by the ALP's promise to deliver fiscal responsibility, demonstrated by its refusal to be drawn into a bidding war with the Coalition over the Australian Nurses Federation's determined push for a decent enterprise agreement for its members.

Both major parties experienced large swings towards them in both the lower and upper houses. In the Legislative Assembly there was a swing of 4.63% to Labor, bringing its vote to 41.87%. In the Legislative Council a swing to Labor of 5.42% took its vote to 43.36%. The Liberal Party's primary vote increased by 4.47% in the Legislative Assembly and 3.15% in the Legislative Council, to 35.63% and 37.11% of the vote respectively.

The growth in the vote for the ALP and Liberals came at the expense of the minor parties, particularly the Australian Democrats and One Nation, who had swings against them of 2% and 8% in both houses. The Greens also suffered a swing of 0.48% against them in the Legislative Council, down to a vote of 7.52%, representing a loss of 1200 votes. In the Legislative Assembly the Greens' vote increased by 0.31%, to 7.58%.

One Nation lost all three of its seats in the Legislative Council to the Liberal Party, and the Greens lost three of their five seats to the ALP. However, the Greens continue to hold the balance of power in the upper house.

The Socialist Alliance stood in three upper house seats and gained between 0.06% and 0.28% of the vote. The Coogee Coastal Action Coalition, which has been campaigning against the construction of the Port Coogee marina, won 0.5% of the vote in the South Metropolitan Region.

From Green Left Weekly #619.

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WA nurses battle heats up

Lisbeth Latham

Just three weeks before Western Australia goes to the polls, the nine-month-long nurses dispute over a new certified agreement has come to a head. The Australian Nursing Federation (ANF) is considering an offer made by the Coalition opposition.

The offer matches the Labor government's, which includes a pay rise of 14.7% over three years, but goes further with an additional $50 million in improved working conditions.

Both the state government and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) have condemned the Coalition's offer. The CCI fears that the offer could lead to improved working conditions across the industry. In the February 1 West Australian, CCI policy director Bruce Williams said the Liberal Party should not have been drawn into a bidding war by the ANF to settle a pay claim because it would add to the cost of running the health system. He also predicted that such a deal would flow on to the private sector by forcing it to match these conditions in order to attract nursing staff.

UnionsWA secretary Dave Robinson told Australian Associated Press on January 31: "The decision made by [state Coalition leader] Colin Barnett to intrude into the wage bargaining process between public sector employees and their employer ... is highly inappropriate."

Media reports have suggested that the ANF is endorsing a vote for the Coalition. ANF state secretary Mark Olson clarified in the January 28 EBA News: "The ANF has never and will never tell members how to vote in a state election. We have said the Coalition $212 million package will encourage nurses to vote for them." What is not clear, however, is how nurses who are running as independent candidates, primarily in marginal seats under the slogan "Nurses for health", will be directing their preferences.

Whilst the Coalition is offering better conditions to nurses than the government, there is no escaping the Coalition's anti-worker agenda. The election of a Coalition government would impact adversely on future bargaining outcomes for all WA workers.

The Labor government's approach to negotiations with the ANF has been one of open hostility, leading to the current stalemate.

In October 2004, the government insisted that any ballot on its offer ordered by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) be voted on by all nurses rather than only ANF members and that the ANF be prevented from commenting on the offer.

In November, the government applied to have the ANF's bargaining period suspended, which was granted by the AIRC in December in order to force the ANF into arbitration. Following the ANF's refusal to accept the offer, the government cut the union out of negotiations by conducting a ballot of all nurses offering a non-union agreement, in which 70% of nurses rejected the government's offer.

The ANF has not been the only union targeted by the government. In 2003, during both the State School Teachers Union (SSTU) and Civil Service Association (CSA) enterprise bargaining campaigns it adopted hostile negotiating tactics, including threats to suspend bargaining periods. Labor MPs crossed a CSA picket of parliament and the government ran a costly two-page advertisement in the West Australian to publicise its offer to teachers while in a conciliation process.

In November 2004 the ANF disaffiliated from UnionsWA, which, according to the November 12 West Australian, was due to its "failure to support the ANF in its battles against the state government over pay and other issues ... and its failure to take the fight up to the government on key issues such as workers' compensation".

UnionsWA and other public sector unions have challenged the Coalition to similarly improve the working conditions of all workers in the public sector. They have also raised concerns over the effect of the agreement on the ALP's electoral prospects in the February 26 poll. UnionsWA secretary Dave Robinson told the Australian on January 28: "Apart from being a Faustian pact, I think [the agreement] is potentially damaging to Labor."

However, the ALP government's hostile attitude to public servants reflects its commitment to a neoliberal agenda, exercising fiscal "responsibility" by limiting spending on social services, pay and conditions and instead heavily subsidising business development. These policies have only served to further alienate the ALP from working people.

Without a strong and united labour movement that is willing to fight for the interests of workers over and above the interests of any political party, it should come as no surprise that some unions will seek to negotiate with and support whichever party they think will best answer their immediate demands.

In the lead-up to the state election, the union movement and the wider community need to apply maximum political pressure on the ALP government to support the nurses' claim. It is this sort of solidarity and action that can force the government to make a just settlement with the nurses.

At the same time it would be a political mistake for nurses to support the election of a Coalition government. Workers will already have a major battle on their hands to defeat the new wave of anti-worker legislation that PM John Howard's Coalition government has flagged. This fight will be made even harder for WA workers — including nurses — if the Coalition wins the state election on February 26.

From Green Left Weekly #614.

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Nurses reject non-union agreement

Lisbeth Latham

In a ballot of nurses employed in Western Australia's public health system, two-thirds voted to reject the state Labor government's offer of a non-union agreement. The clear rejection of the government's attempt to sideline the Australian Nurses Federation occurred despite ongoing public attacks on the ANF.

To help build support for the non-union offer, which was initiated on December 13, state health minister Jim McGinty wrote a letter to all WA nurses. The letter quoted sections of Australian Industrial Relations Commission deputy president Brendan McCarthy's December 8 decision to terminate the ANF's bargaining period, which accused ANF state secretary Mark Olson of not genuinely trying to reach an agreement and of being more interested in conducting a political and media campaign.

UnionsWA secretary-elect Dave Robinson initially appeared to support the government's move. He told the December 14 West Australian: "We don't approve of any of this in general but there appears to be a special case here. We expect the government to negotiate with unions in the future, no ifs and no buts". Robinson then told the December 14 Workplace Express, UnionsWA's online journal, that the West Australian's report was incorrect and UnionsWA was totally opposed to any attempt to bypass the ANF.

According to the Workplace Express, Robinson had "initially believed (incorrectly) that the government was merely conducting a straw-poll ballot to gauge nurses' reaction to its offer — a move he would also normally oppose but for the levels of frustration on all sides of the protracted dispute".

Grahame Armstrong, in a December 19 Sunday Times article entitled "Nurse demands a sick joke", described Olsen as a "headline-hunting, ambitious unionist" who was seeking to use state elections to "squeeze more money" out of taxpayers.

The ANF opposed the government's offer because it failed to address nurses' demands for reduced workloads. According to the ANF, the final offer included a number of setbacks both on previous government offers and existing conditions. These include roster changes no longer requiring the approval of the majority of nurses, loss of accumulated days off for clinic nurses (in lieu of overtime) and changes to the definition of shift worker, which would have reduced some nurses' leave by up to a week.

After the defeat of the non-union agreement, the government will take the dispute into arbitration. However, according to a January 12 enterprise bargaining update to members, the ANF is continuing to push for the government to negotiate further.

There is likely to be ongoing pressure on the Labor government to deliver a better deal for nurses. The ANF has been threatening to campaign against the ALP outside polling booths in the state election.

From Green Left Weekly #611.

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WA train drivers strike

Lisbeth Latham

Metropolitan train drivers voted on February 13 to strike as part of their campaign for a new enterprise agreement. The Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) later that day ordered the workers to return to work. However, most workers did not return to work until the morning of February 16.


The walkout was prompted by the failure of the Western Australian Labor government's Public Transport Authority (PTA) to provide the union with the full text of its enterprise agreement offer prior to the stop-work meeting, Bob Christison, Rail, Train and Bus Union (RTBU) state secretary, told Green Left Weekly.

Christison said another reason for the workers' decision to strike was that they had received two letters the previous week, which they considered to be "threatening and intimidatory". "Those letters came from the minister for infrastructure and the acting chief executive officer of the PTA, and that further inflamed the situation", Christison said.

Christison said the union has been forced into industrial action over the past four months by the WA government's attempt to restrict public sector workers' wage increases to 9% over three years.

The government has offered a 6.9% pay rise over two years, which the union says is acceptable. However, RTBU is also attempting to regain working conditions lost in previous agreements, the most important being that workers receive days off in lieu when they work on public holidays, and that there be a cap on the number of journeys (or distance travelled) that train drivers work in a day. The RTBU has demanded that the pay rise be backdated to October 1, as the old agreement expired on September 30.

The union is also attempting to protect train guards' rosters. When the PTA first employed guards, they were rostered to shifts of between eight and 10 hours. Part-time guards filled the gaps with shifts of approximately six hours per day, five days a week.

Nine months ago, the PTA moved to shorten full-time workers' minimum shift and stop employing part-time workers. In response, the RTBU demanded that full-time workers' shifts be a minimum of eight hours. The PTA rejected this demand on the morning of the February 13 stop-work meeting.

The next flashpoint in the dispute will be the fate of drivers who failed to return to work prior to February 16. Although the IRC has indicated that it is unlikely that action will be taken against the RTBU, the PTA is threatening to sack workers who failed to work their rostered shifts.

From Green Left Weekly #572.

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WA teachers to vote on new agreement

Lisbeth Latham

On January 16, the Western Australian branch of the Australian Education Union indicated that it will recommend acceptance of a new offer negotiated between the AEU and the state education department for a certified agreement (CA).

While the new offer gives some staff wage increases of up to 14% over three years, this applies predominantly to teachers in administrative positions; the majority of teachers will receive 9.2% over three years, only a slight increase of the original offer of 9% and well short of AEU's claim of 30%.

However, throughout the campaign the AEU executive had said it was willing to accept a lower wage rise in return for movement on other key concerns of members. These included the time allocated to duties other than teaching (DOTT) for primary teachers, class sizes and measures to encourage the retention of graduate teachers in the public education system.

The new offer will increase DOTT for primary teachers by 20 minutes in 2005, and commits the department to make further increases in the next and future CAs to move towards equity with secondary teachers.

The offer also allows for reduction in class sizes to 28 students for year 8 and year 9 classes in 30 schools, adding to the 45 high schools included in the 2000 CA. Similar class reductions will occur for years 4-7 in 200 primary schools over 2004 and 2005.

The offer also provides for reductions in the teaching loads for lower level administrative staff.

A January 16 AEU press release stated that the executive "considers that this agreement delivers an acceptable response to members' concerns about working conditions including class sizes".

However, a number of rank-and-file AEU members have told Green Left Weekly that they felt that these gains may not outweigh the concession made on wages, particularly considering the industrial activity taken by AEU members, including the half-day and full-day stoppages in September and November.

They noted that a number of the elements that are now seen as acceptable by the executive in the new offer, particularly primary DOTT, have not moved forward on the department's September offer.

AEU members will vote on the new CA in the early weeks of first term, which begins on February 2.

From Green Left Weekly #568.

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Rail unionists drive for a better deal

Lisbeth Latham

Train drivers on Perth's metropolitan rail-lines stopped work for four hours on January 11 to discuss the Rail, Tram and Bus Union's campaign for a new enterprise agreement. RTBU rail division secretary Bob Christison told Green Left Weekly that 65% of train drivers who are union members attended the stop-work meeting.

The RTBU claim calls for a wage rise of 20% over two years compared to the government's offer of 6.5% over the same period. In addition to the wage rise, the RTBU's log of claims is aimed at improving working conditions. Two key issues that have emerged during the campaign are workers' toilet breaks and the number of guards on night trains.

The timing of drivers' toilet breaks has become an issue due to a number of safety incidents at stations and railway crossings. When these incidents occur, trains can be heldup for an extended time and drivers do not have access to toilets. Consequently, in September last year, the RTBU directed drivers to take toilet breaks prior to beginning a section, rather than at the end of it. The Public Transport Authority, however, demanded the RTBU lift the directive.

When the union refused, the authority sought orders from the WA Industrial Relations Commission to end the practice and threatened to suspend enterprise bargaining negotiations. The authority has opposed breaks prior to journeys because it claims that on a number of occasions it has delayed train departures. Christison told GLW that one driver was quizzed about her toilet breaks. In response the RTBU held stop work meetings on November 25.

The RTBU members are pushing for increased guard numbers on night trains, to resolve concerns over public safety. Currently, two guards travel on all trains after 7pm, but as Christison told the January 13 West Australian, trains "could be left without a guard if a passenger became unruly and required an escort to the nearest station".

On January 11, the union implemented work bans directing drivers to stop trains if guards leave the train. If these bans are still in place on January 26, it is possible that there will be disruption to the fireworks event that day, which is Perth's biggest single-day public transport load.

From Green Left Weekly #567

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WA public servants strike

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — On November 27, public servants escalated their campaign for a new certified agreement (CA) with a 24-hour stoppage.

The government attempted to put off the strike by making a late offer on November 25. Community and Public Sector Union/Civil Service Association (CPSU/CSA) branch secretary Toni Walkington told Green Left Weekly that the offer was a "last-minute stunt" which did "not resolve the issues of workload, job security and incentives for people to work in regional areas. Those issues ultimately affect community services and the quality of services to the public."

Premier Geoff Gallop's Labor government has dismissed the strike as a dismal failure, claiming that only 700 workers participated. The CPSU/CSA claims that 7000 workers participated in the strike action with services stopped or reduced in 20 sections of the public service.

In the centre of Perth, five pickets were held with the largest being outside the state parliament. The union had requested that MPs not cross the line. However, following a directive from Gallop, most Labor MPs either crossed the picket line or entered parliament before 8.30 am when the picket started.

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union state secretary Kevin Reynolds told the November 28 West Australian that the CFMEU would not support the re-election of any ALP MP who crossed the picket line. He called on other unions to do the same.

The government's arrogance and intransigence can only strengthen the resolve of public servants. When the city picket lines converged on the government's ministerial offices at Governor Stirling Tower, Walkington told the gathered unionists that while in opposition, "Gallop had said he valued the work of the public service... Well, Geoff, you haven't done that, you have offered us the crumbs after you have made an agreement with the police."

The government is rapidly developing an image of intransigence towards workers' conditions in order to protect its budget surplus and subsidise business development in the state.

With more and more public sector workers enterprise agreements and CAs expiring, the government faces growing industrial unrest. As a result, the employing class is getting worried about the future of the government. The November 22 Financial Review outlined its concerns over what it sees as the bogging down of the government agenda and growing community opposition with an "almost daily queue of protests outside Parliament House".

From Green Left Weekly #564

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11,000 teachers strike in WA

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — Despite heavy rain and a fierce campaign of misinformation by the state Labor government, 5000 teachers attended a rally on November 18 as part of their campaign for a new certified agreement.

The first full-day strike by Western Australian teachers in eight years involved half of WA's 20,000 public school teachers.

In the days leading up to the strike, state education minister Alan Carpenter, education director-general Paul Albert and WA Council of State Schools Organisations president Rob Fry all made statements in the West Australian condemning the strike as unnecessary and being against the interests of students. Carpenter has also claimed that as conciliation was beginning it was unnecessary for the teachers to strike.

However, as Dave Kelly, general secretary of WA branch of the Australian Education Union (AEU), told the rally, the government has been steadfastly refusing to enter negotiations with the AEU, although a framework for conciliation had been agreed to in August.

Under the pressure of the strike, the government approached the AEU and the Australian Industrial Relations Commission to initiate conciliation on November 17, with meetings to occur on November 24, 25 and 28 if necessary.

The key issues identified by the AEU have been pay levels for beginning teachers; primary school teachers receiving equal levels of duties other than teaching (DOTT) as other teachers, to allow for class preparation; and reduction in class sizes.

Following Kelly's address, the teachers marched to Parliament House. Contrary to the government's hopes, the marchers received a warm response from passers-by, with motorists tooting and construction workers on city building sites cheering the marching teachers.

From Green Left Weekly #563.

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WA teachers escalate industrial action

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — On November 6, the Western Australian branch executive of the Australian Education Union (AEU) announced that a 24-hour strike would be held on November 18 to support the teachers union's campaign for a new certified agreement.

The strike will be the first full-day stoppage by WA teachers for eight years, and has been called in response to the state Labor government's attempt to take the AEU into arbitration following the union's rejection of the government's second offer.

The strike has also been called in response to the government's attempt to suspend the bargaining period for a new agreement. Premier Geoff Gallop's government claims that the industrial action that is being taken by teachers in support of their campaign is disrupting and adversely affecting the schooling and education of large numbers of students.

However, the industrial relations commission has postponed any decision until a hearing on December 1-3.

Teachers are not alone in seeing their campaign for better wages and conditions being frustrated by the WA Labor government. Since October 23, members of the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union (LHMU) who work as cleaners, gardeners and education assistants in WA schools, have been conducting work bans in support of a claim for a wage rise of 15% over two and half years.

According to Sue Lines, acting LHMU state secretary, the government has refused to negotiate with the union, but instead has sought to have the Western Australia Industrial Commission lift the bans.

Members of the Civil Service Association (CSA) have imposed bans targeting government revenue-raising as part of their campaign for a new certified agreement.

On November 7, workers in the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages issued certificates for free. According to the CSA, the public response was so overwhelming that management decided to close the doors of the registry early. Workers at the registry told the union that by midday revenue losses exceeded the registry's maximum daily takings of $5000.

From Green Left Weekly #562.

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WA teachers rally for public education

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — On September 24, 500 angry public school teachers rallied outside the Western Australian parliament to demand that Premier Geoff Gallop's Labor government agree to the log of claims their union has put to the government.

Singing "Wake up Geoff", the teachers demanded that Gallop, treasurer Eric Ripper and education minister Alan Carpenter face the rally. However, no representative of the government was willing to either address the rally or listen to the demands of the teachers.

Australian Education Union state secretary Dave Kelly reported to the rally on a meeting between the AEU's negotiating committee and the state education department over the government's new offer for a certified agreement with the teachers. Kelly said that while the new offer was a "step in the right direction", there were three outstanding matters that meant the union's executive could not endorse it.

These were around the offered wage increase, primary school teachers' duties other than teaching (DOTT) and class sizes. The government is now offering a wage increase to teachers of 9.27% over 30 months. This would amount to a 1% increase in real wages.

The government proposes the primary school teachers' DOTT be increased by 20 minutes to 200 minutes per week, which falls well short of the claim of 320 minutes DOTT to achieve equity with secondary teachers. The government does not address the need to reduce class sizes.

Kelly told the rally that the AEU branch executive would discuss an escalation of "industrial action to bring a firm agreement home for educators across the state".

WA AEU vice-president Mike Keely announced that the government had dropped its push for a flat pay rate for casual teachers. Such a flat rate would have represented a pay cut for more experienced teachers.

From Green Left Weekly #556.

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8000 teachers rally in Perth

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — Eight thousand members of the Australian Education Union (AEU) attended a vibrant stop work meeting at Subiaco Oval on September 17, as part of a half-day stoppage to win a 30% pay rise over the next three years. Hundreds of AEU members also met throughout regional WA to discuss the union's industrial campaign.

The teachers attending the rally were in a defiant mood, following the hostile media statements made by education minister Alan Carpenter prior to the strike. These statements included urging teachers to "call off this totally unnecessary strike" and telling the media on September 9 that the AEU's state executive had endorsed the government's offer.

The stop-work was addressed by UnionsWA secretary Stephanie Mayman, AEU national president Pat Byrne and AEU (WA) general secretary David Kelly.

Mayman told the teachers that they had the "full support of public and private sector unions across Western Australia, in your fight for what is a fair resolution".

Byrne pointed out that the government had been elected on a platform of supporting quality public education, but, with the current wage offer of 9% over two and half years, would only provide wage maintenance as the "consumer price index indicates that for 2003 inflation in Western Australia was 2.9%. [The state government] can genuinely seen by the electorate as reneging on its platform.

"Given also the billion dollar deals in the Pilbara being made; the GST benefits to state governments starting to kick in and the fact that this state's economy has grown by 9.3% during the last twelve months, public sector workers have every right to be cynical. Three per cent is treading water", she added.

The WA government's offer includes a pay cut for relief teachers, incredibly given the teacher shortge makes relief teachers hard to find.

The AEU (WA) branch executive moved resolutions that: condemned the government's intransigence and failure to provide an offer that addresses teacher shortages; rejected the present offer from the government; empowered the AEU (WA) branch leadership to continue negotiations; initiated further industrial action, which will begin in term 4; empowered the executive, in the event of the government moving to suspend the bargaining period, to begin a political campaign to achieve adequate resourcing for public education and called a protest rally outside state parliament for 4pm September 24.
From Green Left Weekly #555

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School teachers announce strike action

Lisbeth Latham

PERTH — On August 11, the Australian Education Union's Western Australian branch executive announced that a half-day strike is to be held on September 17. The strike will intensify the AEU's industrial campaign to win a new certified agreement.

The WA Labor government has offered a 9% pay increase each year, for the next three years. This is short of the AEU's claim for 30% raise over the life of the agreement.

AEU WA president Pat Byrne described the offer as an "insult to teachers". It fails to address issues of "workload, teacher supply especially in country area, it does nothing to attract and retain teachers. It barely meets cost of living increases", Byrne said.

The AEU's log of claims focuses on reducing teachers' workloads, particularly non-teaching duties, to allow more teaching time. The union has imposed a series of work bans on non-teaching activities since August 7.

From Green Left Weekly #550

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