John Howard has run out of issues to fight the next election on. Its looks like Union Bosses is the new mantra.

Joe Hockey in a recent interview seemed to suddenly realise that he should be saying Union Bosses instead of just Unions, it must be party policy to add bosses when referring to the Union movement.

As if people are unaware the Labor party has always been the political arm of the union movement.

The other and related issue is that all Governments in Australia will have Labor Governments, is this a bad thing? If it happens it will be because it is the will of the people, it will get rid of the "its all the states fault" defence and maybe it would be a good thing. Some real State-Federal cooperation may happen without the present system where funding is contingent on Federal Govt. demands.

The last issue is the Future Fund. This is being spun as being for the benefit of our Kids. In fact it is to pay Commonwealth Public Servants super and as Peter Costello said in parliament today it will not be needed until 2030.

Billions of dollars that should be spent on infrastructure for our kids is being locked away, our taxes being used to speculate on the stock exchange. Producing nothing, except profits on paper.

If this is the best Howard can think of its time to retire. :)

Steve the fact Johny short bottom and his dirty half dozen are focused on more lies about unions is fun.
After all it is the wrong time and place to drop the red herring just as workchoices has taken the lower income earners even lower.
Fear driven the campaign is unlikely to stick nearly as well as the community one known as your rights at work has and will continue to do.
Why lie? well it worked so very well, once so try and try again.
But you can tell if you understand body language when Hockey is about to lie.
In fact any member of the dirty half dozen including the leader.
Give body language a go watch carefully ,if the lips are moving they are lieing~!

hey Belly Mr wran had something to do with TNT didnt he

hows labor going with suncorp metway

any state assets going to union or labor companies

The union bosses dont know whats going on just like workchoices

Unions didnt know labor didnt know they were both asleep and next state election well lets see the Australian peoples Party will be at those next time.

Choice for the people

Not just voting labor for labor
liberal for liberal
but

The Australian Peoples Party for the people.

This party may not make a difference this time federally but next time, get yourself some new union approved safety shoes, you will need them for running.

www.tapp.org.au

Stu will you please not spam this topic. I suggest you attend a remedial english course before you post again.

Poor old steve

Unions and labor the same if you want to go on about the future fund
then why does the government have to pay for a public listed company

Maybe we should just give it to the unions, the bosses would enjoy the pay rise.
And on that when the workers get a pay rise ever noticed how union fees go up.

I dont remedial, if you dont like it try english, Australian.
Short straight to the point.

Telstra should get on with the job but who gets this work that labor is so hard at getting done, any union companies,maybe labor.

The unions should be worried about rudd, lets see how far he pushes them out.

So if its union bosses labor all the same, looking after themselves.

Steve is, of course, correct.

From today's Crikey email: "Today, as he celebrates the first birthday of the Government’s WorkChoices legislation, the Prime Minister is manning the airwaves to kick the union can. But is it a can still worth kicking?

"The unions are not interested in the working conditions of families," according to the PM. "They are interested in union power … on this issue, Labor power means union power."

“Union power”? Twenty years ago, 50% of all Australian workers were members of a union: today the unionisation rate is just 23%. Twenty years ago, strikes were rife: now the number of days lost to industrial disputes is around a quarter of its level in the early 1980s. During the year ended December 2006, there were 202 disputes, 270 fewer than in the year ended December 2005.

Attacking Labor’s association with the unions used to be one of the most effective tactics for conservative politicians. But in 2007, when a grandfatherly 67-year-old appears in public wearing his old union-bashing boots, it reveals more about his old-fashioned ideas about "union power" than it reflects on the real state of the modern world of work."

As for this:

tapp: "I dont remedial, if you dont like it try english, Australian.
Short straight to the point (sic)".

Stu, if you want to be taken seriously, you really need to lift your game.

Of course the Liberals don't have any political masters who call the shots for them at all, and the Nationals have no interest in what the NFF want.

They just sit around thinking up elaborate schemes to pay workers more money and improve their conditions.

James Hardie would have eventually seen the error of its ways and voluntarily compensated all those injured workers as well.

There was an error in my first post, Peter Costello said the future fund would not be needed 'till 2020, not 2030 as I stated. (I checked Hansard). Does not change my point though.

The raiding the future fund is another red herring, Labor intend to sell the remaining shares in Telstra. This is specifically allowed in the Telstra sale legislation. Rudd has just removed $2.7 billion from Howards election war chest.

Unions? come Johny short on honesty, you can not flog that dead horse our power went a very long time ago.
We give to so many community Charity's of our funds and our time it is hard to call us evil to them.
Red necks like Tapp decry the truth we are a community of like minded people in no way as harmful as those big business unions that control Howard, no I was not referring to his wife this time.
Anyone who has no wealth only his time and body's out put to sell to eat has every right to see some of the wealth creation comes his or her way.
Just yesterday at a meeting of workers at least 4 private one on one meetings got held to assist in private ways, unionism is not out the gate stuff.
Tapp you have to address your fantasy that only you understand the direction Australia must travel.
In time you must and will understand you are on a train without an engine stopped forever.
Get on the one that suits you Labor or Liberal and enjoy the scenery.
Howard has his pointed at a bridge that is no longer in place so I invite you now to join the ALP for at least 12 years of leadership and change in government.
People should question the true intent of workchoices and ask why a boss can have his union still but not a worker.
Wages are the life blood of rural Australia and those places should be the first to inform Howard at the polls workchoices is evil.
Conservatives should inquire how low wages can be seen as the best way to make a quid.

Next lie, real wages have risen 14% under Howard but only 1.6% under Hawke/Keating.

Statistically true, but dishonest.

If you look at median wages and not average wages, the rate of increase is a miserly 3.6% if you include the 9% super introduced by Labor (in lieu of pay rises) the Hawke/Keating Govt did much better on wages.

Why is there such a huge difference between median and average? Because the top 10% of wage earners have given themselves indecent amounts at the expense of everyone else and Costello has given them tax cuts far in advance of what they need or deserve.

Steve, I would like to see the stats on average wages if you cut out those that earn over $200,000 (because few would be wage earners - most like business owners), and cut out those that earn less than $15,000 pa (because they are not working full-time and also distort the true average wage). The median wage is also not truly reflective of the situation, because again the median will be distorted by high income (and low income) earners. Its interesting when you get out of the cities. I live in a large country town, where the average wage is $38,000 (set to go up as mining increases of course). Also, it would be interesting to see average household income, as that's probably more indicative of how much Australians are using to live, particularly if one or more adults in the house is only working part-time.

Wobbles, actually the consensus among most country people is that the Nationals DONT care about what the NFF wants. Most traditional Nationals voters will mutter about when they changed from the Country Party to the Nationals. That's why there is a big swing towards independents in country seats. A lot of damage happened in 96 when the liberals federally had a majority in their own right, and didnt need the Nationals. Many National Party members resigned from the party in disgust.

Country Gal,

Thanks, point taken about the NFF.

I heard it really stands for "No Family Farms", which would help explain a few things.

:)

Wobbles, its no different to any other political body, generally full of sh!t. Those that it is supposed to represent are too busy just surviving to try to force any change. Probably no different to any other group in that sense, including the trade unions....

I claim no sainthood for trade unions, however not everything that is said about them is true.
I would gladly bring some change if I could, but we must not forget some very real grubs are employers.
I operate as an old time union official did for me in my youth, get close with your members and regard them as mates, always be unhappy if you can not help them out.
We all know the anti union stuff ,how many know the anti workers story's?
I had no car today it broke down returning from a 1200 klm round trip so I luckily had another official with me.
Intent on getting a fair go for casual workers on a civil construction site we sat down with the prime contractor.
High lighting some of those workers had been direct employees on his last job and soon would be on this one.
Inviting comment on the fact including casual loading of 25% they are all paid less than the lowest paid full time worker on site[ who atrack holiday pay, and about $300 a week in total paid allowances more than the casuals.
You could if you wanted to say a union official pressing the poor boss for higher wages!
Not so fair go mate! was MY REQUEST NOTHING MORE.
He informed me it was the law under workchoices it could be done!?
And after I was able to confirm he had casual employees on his site who had not been issued boots glasses and shirts, he stuck by its the law!
How do these victims of workchoices live on so much less?
Working 6 days 10 hours how can one Australian do this to another?
If unions are wrong what do you think of this firm?
Products of unwed parents, some grubs never turn into butterfly's this mob will find that is true.

Country Gal

The median wage does reflect the wage that the majority of workers earn, this is an example of the median.

"Suppose 19 paupers and 1 billionaire are in a room. Everyone removes all money from their pockets and puts it on a table. Each pauper puts $5 on the table; the billionaire puts $1 billion there. The total is then $1,000,000,095. If that money is divided equally among the 20 persons, each gets $50,000,004.75. That amount is the mean (or "average") amount of money that the 20 persons brought into the room. But the median amount is $5, since one may divide the group into two groups of 10 persons each, and say that everyone in the first group brought in no more than $5, and each person in the second group brought in no less than $5. In a sense, the median is the amount that the typical person brought in. By contrast, the mean (or "average") is not at all typical, since no one present—pauper or billionaire—brought in an amount approximating $50,000,004.75."

I note that the ABS has stopped reporting median wages, it stopped in 2004. They used to report median and average, not anymore I wonder why?

House prices are reported as the median price, if they used the average price it would scare people witless. Just one example of how mean and tricky our Govt. has become.

ie It takes x months of average wages to buy the median house. Apples with apples Joe. :)

It is a shame that threads in this forum sometimes slip away out of sight and out of mind while still of interest to many.
And also that the threads that sometimes replace them are of little interest to most.
This thread will be gone soon as all fall in time but the thread is a part of the federal election debate that this country must have .
If current polls and public views hold we will soon have one party in power right across Australia.
In fact it would be unthinkable that this will not be the case.
Unions are for the most part putting every effort into removing Howard and looking at excepting far less than the full list they would want after workchoices is gone.
Hardly the union bosses of the 40.s and even 50,s while the debate is going to continue in many threads under many names it will Eb and flow as it slips away each week.
I would ask posters who do not truly understand unions to look into those groups who do have the very real power ,conservative groups who give big money to this government and directions.
Big business unions are in charge of the governments ears and secrete groups who act so very much worse than trade unions in the dark .
Just look and you will find some anti union groups act far worse and without being held accountable.

Belly, you are spot on.

These groups don't just lobby the Govt. on policy. They actually write the policy for them.

Costello's latest scare campaign, the GST will be increased under Labor, they are getting desparate.

They are indeed getting desperate lies and miss information are not policy's and even conservatives are not buying it this time.
The election will see a great deal of conservatives vote ALP in the senate.
Surely John Howard and the true power behind his throne his wife know while lies worked in the first two terms they are unlikely to now?
In the Tampa thing brand new Labor candidates with lower IQs than the family dog helped Howard by discarding the party line.
And the public did not care about the lies, they now do very much so.
The your rights at work campaign is a community one not just unions.
John Howard must think of conservative party's long term future not his own ambition, it clearly is time to go.
The only question who will take his place?
Liberalism on the opposition bench's needs a leader who on taking office heads back to Liberalism and discards the dirty tactics.
Why is the Australian Medea not reporting on the endless hen pecking of John Howard in public by his wife?
It is common knowledge that books will be written about it after the conservative train wreck.

CountryGal according to the Australian Taxation Office the median income for Australian adults is $26,000 per annum.

I would hope that it is understood that far too many earn much less than $26.000 a year.
Union bosses, those evil people who had the drought relief convoy to the bush, are aware of many who truly are working poor.
My comments in another thread about workers being paid far less than those working along side them is a start.
Drought has driven them away from family to earn off farm incomes ,running two homes is not easy at anytime, now much harder.
Once civil construction workers in the bush received extra pay to make up for very long hours, rare trips home, and poor living conditions.
Now they too are just starting to be victims of workchoices.
Kids who make an effort to get some place in life got it in the first wave , can anyone tell me hamburger chains need to take penalty rates from kids to stay profitable?
Thanks union bosses we need some one on our side.

Hi Billie, not that I dont believe you, but can you provide a link? I find this interesting as the 2003/04 figures have only just been published by the ATO - certainly not up to date. Most of their figures also include individuals that made a loss (ie business people), which will of course bring down the median (and mean) significantly. The mean income in 2003/04 was $35950.
http://www.ato.gov.au/corporate/content.asp?doc=/content/70906.htm

CountryGal I can't provide a link. I watched the telecast of Michael Carmody, former Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, talking to the National Press Club in March 2006, you can purchase a video/transcript from them. I remember the figure because I had heard it from people working in the tax office earlier. He also said that Australia has a very high rate of people not submitting tax returns at about 64%. I think ACOSS or Andrew Leigh have used the $26,000 in published reports.

Remember the median is when half the population earn above and half earn below. The mean is add up all incomes and divide by the number in the population.

Country Gal

You are correct the latest published figures I know (2003/4) of show a median wage of $34,149.

New South Wales 35,479
Victoria 34,215
Queensland 32,308
South Australia 33,200
Western Australia 33,540
Tasmania 31,397
Northern Territory 37,669
Australian Capital Territory 41,385
Unknown Australia 15,986
TOTAL AUST 34,149


Note: Median not calculated for areas with < 1000 Wage & Salary Earners.
Source: ATO Individual Income Tax Return Data

This is still significantly less than the average, and note it does not take into account remote areas.

It also means that when adjusted for inflation there has been no increase in real wages between 2001 and 2004. Given that anecdotal evidence says that wages have declined under no choices, is this really the best we have ever had?

I think I found the anomaly, the figures I quoted were for full time wage and salary earners. Of course the 100s of thousands of part time workers earn less. So Billies 26,000 make sense to me.

.

Steve,

Mr Burke is the person that the WA Corruption and Crime Commission is investigating.

Because Mr Rudd was working with Mr Burke, it just so happend that the CCC were tapping Mr Burkes conversations and happend accross Mr Rudd.

Dont cloud the issues dont muky the waters.

Mr Rudd today was exposed in the Sydney Morning Herarld , as He and his top advisers abusing threatening intimidating and threating to ruin the career of a 22 year experienced journalist, and the editor of a Queensland news paper.

Mr Rudd has no integrity left.

Mr Rudd should resign before he draggs the good name of the ALP down to his murky depths of threats and intimidation to stop the freedom of the press.

I hope you do not share his characteristics.

.

.

t’s a great Labor story. Rudd even tells of having to sleep in his mum’s car.

But here now is how the children of the farmer who evicted the Rudds remember it:

Dad was a caring, compassionate man with terrific family values. What pains us most is the fact that he thought the world of the Rudds…

Since 1956, Bert [Rudd] had been employed as a share farmer and when the monthly milk cheque came in, his wage was half that cheque…

When Bert died our father had no choice but to employ a new farmer. It was the biggest dairy farm on the Sunshine Coast and there were more than 120 cows that needed milking morning and night.

Margaret [Rudd] would always have known at some point, inevitably, an incoming farmer would have to occupy the farmhouse.

But provisions were put in place by our father for Margaret. He explained to her she could remain on the farm, at no cost whatsoever, until such time as the new farmer arrived.

What Kevin has always failed to state is that the new farmer didn’t even arrive until July - that’s almost six months after his father’s death. During that entire time, our family continued to run the farm…

There was absolutely no reason for them to have left until the new farmer arrived in July.

Lier Lier Mr Dudd

Excerpt posted on yahoo top story about Grubby Ruddy.

.

.

Same Yahoo site, Rudd the story that wont go away. excerpt.

Here Rudd blames bad Queensland hospitals for his father’s death:

Labor leader Kevin Rudd said the death of his father Albert Rudd in 1969, from a hospital-acquired infection, propelled his political aspirations.

Mr Rudd joined the Queensland branch of the Labor Party at 16, five years after his father died from an infection that developed while he was recovering from a serious car accident at the Brisbane Royal Hospital.

“Life changed overnight ... as I thought about it later on, as a kid growing up, it became clearer and clearer to me that the hospital system that I grew up with, that he had to use, was by that stage pretty much Third World,” Mr Rudd told the Nine Network.

In fact:

Mr Rudd said in later years he heard reports that surgeons at the Brisbane Royal Hospital had failed to take proper care of his father. But according to Channel Nine’s Sunday program, which obtained a copy of the coroner’s report, the coroner had cleared doctors of medical malpractice.

The report said Albert Rudd had been drinking before driving, that he kept falling asleep at the wheel, and that when the car hit a power pole, he was not wearing a seatbelt and suffered massive internal injuries.

Lier lier Mr Dudd

.

PerthGuy

I live on The Sunshine Coast, I was in Nambour today and Eumundi yesterday. I don't care what yahoo says about Rudd.

The perceptions of an 11 year old may be innacurate, but all it points out is that Rudd was not born with the priviledge of the ruling class.

As I posted earlier, Rudd's father died of abdominal sepsis, check the coroner's report. This is 100% controllable by antibiotics.

Your posts are getting more rancid every day. Check your facts. If you wish to believe every piece of crud posted by our failing, desperate Govt. thats your prerogative but I tend to look at facts, not smear, innuendo and outright lies.

I am waiting for some original thought from you Perth Guy. I have not read one yet.

Liberals latest lie on Tasmanian forests. Two thirds of the area they said would be protected last election has been logged.

Ooops sorry they say, we could not keep both promises. Another example of Howard saying whatever he feels is neccessary to get votes. Liar Liar.

2 Tasmanian seats back for Labor. Bass and Braddon.
2 WA seats back to Labour Hasluck and Stirling
6 Qld seat back to Labor Bonner, Herbert, Hinkler, Longman, Morton, Petrie
4 Vic seats back to Labor Deakin, Gippsland, McEwen, McMillan
7 NSW seats back to Labor Cunningham, Dobell, Eden-Monaro, Page, Parramatta, Patterson, Richmond
1 SA seat back to Labor Kingston
1 NT Seat back to Labor Solomon

23 seats. Giving Labor 83, Coalition 64 and for once I am being "conservative".

H R Nichols society would be proud of perthguynic to overlook that dreadful controlling group in a thread called union bosses is funny.
The real power behind John Howard and a far more dreadful union than any in our history.
Now it is quite useless debating the issues Rudd is on the way to the lodge and for a long stay.
Perthguynic I doubt you your self believe your posts.

.

Steve,

You disapoint me, you use an intelecutually dishonest arguement, the question the info arguement.

You are very childish.

The character of our elected politicians is a serious issue.

Mr Rudd and his thugs have intimidated threatened abused and blackmailed a journalist and newspaper editor.

I do not accept that behaviour. You may?

Mr Rudd and Brian Burke have been doing deals. The Corruption and Crime Commission will gie us an insight.

Mr Rudd should resign, he should not continue to drag down the reputation of the Great Australian Labor Party.

Nor should you in defending a morrally questionable Mr Rudd.

It demeans you.

.

Perth Guy

If you can provide me any information to back your argument I will stand corrected, but unfortunately you have not been able to quote any corroborating evidence to back your fanciful claims.

Childish? I am many years your senior. (I read from your yahoo rants you are 44) I maintained my rage when the Whitlam Govt. was sacked, I was on the steps of Parliament to hear “nothing will save the Govenor General” I marched against the Vietnam War. A time when you were just out of nappies.

“The character of our elected politicians is a serious issue.” I agree totally.
John Howard-serial liar, Peter Costello-serial liar and architect of work choices, Tony Abbott-serial liar and George Pells inside man, Phillip Ruddock-serial liar and immigration kick back guru, Kevin Andrews-serial liar and The Popes inside man, Ian Macfarlane-serial liar and bag man for the greenhouse mafia, Mark Vaille-I know the Greens get more votes but I am Deputy Dawg. Brendon Nelson-OK USA what crap do you have to sell us, Nick Minchin-tries to be honest, but has a case of foot in mouth (Howard would love to reshuffle him). Helen Coonan-OK Packer and Murdoch what do you want, Warren Truss-Vaille's patsy “Hey warren this trade portfolio is getting a bit hot, want to swap”, Julie Bishop-well WA needed someone, why not a Clayton Utz insider, WA's senior minister is a South Australian. Mal “tough” Brough-why were community services looking after one of his kids? Peter McGauran- OK I was elected a Nat but shucks I love the Liberals. Chris Ellison- Been back to Zimbabwe lately, also known as Chris who?
Almost forgot Malcolm Turnbull- The former General Counsel for Consolidated Press Holdings Limited, the Packer family's media group.

One last chance, some facts. Not I heard this from a mate, not some gossip, not some fanciful hope that the CCC will illegally release a non existant tape.

Perth Guy I have not attacked you personally, but I must admit the odd ad hominem attack is not beyond me, justify your claims with verifiable facts if you can.

perthguynic these pages have always been a forum to debate and to discuss the daily issues in our life.
A free space that is not allowed us in the letters to the editor in a press that no longer values free speech unless it is focused in the direction they want.
I have a habit some do not, I read every post in a thread that interests me often more than twice.
Some post just the opinion they have and while not truly taking the time to read others posts seem to hope others will read theirs.
I have read every thing you ever posted here.
And remain unconvinced you actually believe what you post.
Mate I question that phone tap, I do not believe it exists.
In just days new polls will again show Rudd has Howard under control.
And I too am near twenty years older than you and know first hand what it is like to remain in opposition for years .
Rudd is no old fashioned ALP leader because no old time leader could ever win power, he however is a winner.
I born a socialist am now different and so too is the electorate, we gain nothing by trying to sell ice to Eskimos.
Last weekend I saw Labor fail to win a seat it has always held by 27 votes.
While people have every right to vote as they wish I would hope a vote is not given based on lies or spite.
I do not care that your posts refuse to answer me but remain convinced your posts are not always true.
Are you from the H R Nicol's society? a chance exists that your stated extreme left home is another questionable statement.

Steve Madden, Mr. Rudds father died of Abdominal Sepsis.

This also happened to my Aunt who was in a road accident. The fact that she had a bad internal infection wasnt noticed by the nurses and she wasnt able to speak to tell them. Her relatives could actually smell the infection and had to firmly insist that the nurses check it out before it was picked up.

Its very hard to prove medical negligence in a court room because the medical system closes ranks to protect itself.

The workers themselves are to blame for these new industrial laws. They have failed to stand up for their right to strike when governments or bosses have sacked fellow workers who have been on strike fighting for better conditions.

When the Railway workers(tradesmen) went on strike to get a 38hour week Bjelke Peterson the then Premier of the state stood them down and threatened to sack them. Incidentally the PUBLIC SERVICE (office workers) in the Railway had had a 37hr week for years.

The whole nation should have walked off the job in order to protect the power of the unions when that happened. It was then that the unions lost their right to strike and the workers lost the protective umbrella of the unions. bUT THE WORKERS HAD DEVELOPED A STUFF YOU I'M ALRIGHT jACK attitude because their working conditions faught for by the unions in the past were so good.

I saw the whole nation stop work when I was a girl and workers stood together. The politicians backed down immediately the very next day
and the workers won. I forget what it was over now as I was just a girl but I remember being impressed by the power of the workers to hold sway over the government when they all stood together.

The workers dont understand that before they unionised there was a lot of exploitation by employers. Early last century Grandaddy Rockerfella (yes the same well know mega rich Rockerfella clan) wasnt paying his workers enough to feed and house thier families, so they banded together (unionised to get more wages and better conditions in the mines where they worked).

Rockerfella no doubt backed up by the police and government at the time (Money buys politicians), turned the guns on the workers and shot dead 11 of them. The schock that rippled through the American nation in the aftermath bought about change.

I dont trust either the Labour or the Liberal party these days and in the past have been a swinging voter at times but now I find it hard to vote for anyone.

I have trouble understanding it myself workers do not always want to even be in unions.
But once in trouble they rush to find us, I will try to give my ideas on why it is much as you say.
A union worth being in wins much without a war behind the scenes wages are increased and gains achieved.
That has become the way many unionist want it to continue, you can as an official be called to a new shop and welcomed with a membership card from every worker on site.
But fail to get one to put the hand up and become union delegate[ not legal under Workchoices, they must be worker Representatives].
This is not weakness but it can be fear driven, if you ever meet a boss who tells you quote * why would my blokes want a union? my door is always open I look after them * end quote.
Know deeply and honestly its a toss of the coin if it is true.
No not all bosses are bad most in fact are not but those words often point to a boss who is just about as popular as death!
It is no threat to unions that we must find different ways to service our members.
But it is to find so many who once knew our history back wards who do not think workchoices alone is enough reason to return Labor to office
In relation to union delegates is it not strange if I sat down today with an employer who wanted the union he is in at the table he could do so?
My company delegates could not be called union delegates?
Fair go John Howard!

hey Steve,

Union bosses, lead unions, and yes some have a good swag of numbers within The ALP.

Today political parties on the whole subscribe to the economic imperative argument, we cannot afford old fashioned values in today’s global economy

The Australian Labor Party, was born from the union movement, but today’s world dictates legitimately that the Australian Labor Party must adopt the economic argument.

Creating an organization which is half in and half out especially to issues which values are jetisoned.

The failure by both parties Union Bosses,Unions and Labor, to develop their own unique brand has lead to confusion in its own minds and the minds of the public and union members as to where they stand and what is the relationship between Labor and Unions.

The future for the Australian Union Movement, is not linked to a political party, it is linked by the core values of the union movement.

Its 'Brand' should concentrate on its dual roles, recognizing and proving for the dignity, saftey and equity of workers , while lobbying a progressive social platform to the Government of the day.

Reassuringly, no matter what party is in power federally, there will always be an Australian Union Movement, relevant in all concerns of workers.

Like them or not, they are relevant.

The party structure should have been moderised by now.

.

The union bosses will hate this.

Today Mr Rudd and his 'Brand of Labor', through Ms Gillard, has publically stated that labor will keep the hated AWA's, for about 3 years as a transition.

Thanks Mr Rudd real heart and soul, NOT.

Current Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) would be subject to “a sensible transition period over two or three years,” said the spokesman.

Ms Gillard has asked Australian workers who have lost conditions to sign up on-line to send a message to the government that the laws must go.

“They allow take-it-or-leave it AWAs, which cut basic award conditions, including penalty rate, overtime, leave loading and even public holiday pay,” she said.

So no new AWAs and removing existing ones, whats wrong with that PGn?