The Labor party appears to forget it was born of the unions/working class.

I believe that the right to withdraw labour is a fundamental human right that Australia has signed up to in a UN treaty/agreement. (I am sure someone will know the agreement that I refer to.) It would be interesting to see a test case in an international court.

I once used to think that the 'secret ballot' was perhaps a good thing for unions but then realised that maybe it would only be good if our members of parliament also complied. Wouldn't it give a new meaning to democracy if there were secret ballots by our pollies. Imagine the furore if it were suggested

Billie, you’ll have noticed how the patronising Doc Holliday avoided your issues about employers manipulating the new IR laws to avoid their obligations in the drive for profit. Like your 19 year old nephew who had to set up his own company to sell advertising, my 20 year old was obliged to do the same to teach music. This allowed his employer to avoid all obligations on tax, superannuation, leave and insurance. Desperate for work, he signed a contract as a casual that rendered him powerless to improve his situation. He was not allowed to work for anyone else in the same field, was forbidden to criticize the company and had to find his own replacement in the event of becoming sick. If kids didn't turn up - with or without notice - he didn't get paid for his time or travel costs. The fine print required services at the end of term for which there was no remuneration. This company now has a compliant workforce rendered powerless to negotiate a fairer deal. Or so they imagined.

He resigned after a few weeks of this madness costing the company heaps in terms of goodwill, replacement processes and causing hardship for the kids and their families. Not to mention additional costs to Centrelink and taxpayers.

As for the so-called right to strike, good ol’ Doc picks the facts that suit him and ignores those that don't. In Parliament, the IR Minister gloated he will be able to declare strikes illegal where they threaten life, personal safety, (no argument with those), 'health or welfare of the population' or are ‘likely to cause significant damage to the economy’ (Hansard 2 Nov 2005). And who judges when a strike is likely to do that? Why, the Minister of course.

The 'Right to Withdraw your Labour' is not about the ability to strike, it about the right to quit. It's about indentured servitude and slavery, which aren't just yet included in Work Choices, but give it time....

If the detriment to the unions is so large with the new Rudd 'rollback' then they logically should disassociate from the ALP. If it is daunting for them to contemplate going it alone then they should appreciate that as a service industry there will be plenty of work available. This is because Howard's Fair Pay Commission has decided to release all data on pay rates. There should be enough angry potential union members resulting from this for the progressive union service industry to boost its market coverage well beyond the current 27%. It might also keep many union officials from deluding themselves that they would make talented politicians.

I'd like to know when this fabulous IR legislation that is being touted as so good for the economy and Australian workers was advertised in the 2004 Election campaign. I don't recall Howard mentioning it. Where were the ads detailing WorkChoices? There should have been night after night of ads about WorkChoices. Or maybe they just happened to have been on when I wasn't watching. And why wasn't the legislation ready when Howard beat Latham on Election night? It's all a mystery.

I fully agree with the premise that we have, and should have, a right to withdraw our labour. I have done it about a dozen times in my life when I was no longer happy with my employer for any of several reasons - insufficient challenge, inadequate remuneration, poor leadership, or unethical practices. In each case I withdrew my labour by resigning from that particular position, and went and found myself something which challenged, remunerated, and led me better in an ethical business.

What I have trouble with is the belief that one can withdraw their labour today, but still expect to go back to their job tomorrow. I do not believe that should be a right. If an employee withdraws their labour they have, in effect, terminated their employment and should have no right to subsequently march back in to their former job.