Employers were happier dealing with union dialogue. Not all laws fit or can be made to fit.
Laws imposed had their unrealistic approach that one law fits all, where as union would fisacally see the job and application of work at hand.

Agreements between union and management ground against each other when it came to stipulated laws. Besides that a same day deal could be struck.

Unions do not go against health and safety, as a matter of course

Dear Shadow Minister,

I'd better quit as I have to admit that I don't
know too much about the ABCC. Suffice to say that
the unlawful conduct that seems to pervade the
building industry is common knowledge. Whether it
can only be contained by a strong watchdog with
strong powers I really don't know.

cont'd ...

I meant to add that - Construction is one of those
industries which attracts commercial and
criminal intimidation. To stop it the law needs to
specifically target this behaviour.

Essentially I guess it is up to the Senate to support
or reject what is currently going to be presented by
the Coalition.

Hopefully, the right decision will be made for all
concerned.

Foxy,

The point I was trying to make is that criminality is rife in the unions especially in the building industry primarily because there no oversight and no accountability. If the same reporting requirements were required of the unions as even the smallest of businesses, crooks would be exposed far quicker and crooks put in jail.

OTB said;
The problem for the LNP is that they have long forgotten how to listen and talk with young people

I think you might be right and you know why ?
The young have seen the hard work for nothing that their fathers have
put into the farm and have left. There are only the older farmers left
so it is no wonder they only talk to the older voters.

The question I have is do we starve or eat Chinese food ?

Criminality is a police matter, i don't think Abbott has any such thing in mind. He is more in the line of deregulating unionism.

In the large scale building jobs the builders and unions need each other, the builders like their profit margins and the workers like their wages and conditions. Without that balance profit margins would fall, and no one would want to take the risk.

Lets await Abbott's wordings