In 1950, the UN General Assembly proclaimed 10 December as Human Rights Day in order to call attention to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. You can read this item on the ITUC website here Importantly for trade unions, the Declaration provides: Article 23 (1) Everyone has the right to…

The official package agreed in Bali and released with great fanfare on 7 December demonstrates how unbalanced the global trade agenda still is. The WTO continues to be unable to craft trade policies that serve development and are consistent with the most important issues for the world’s poor, such as…

The ASU is alarmed to learn that over $150 million in regional development grants may not be honoured by the new Federal Government. This will have a huge negative impact on the delivery of services and infrastructure to local communities. The ASU, Australia's largest local government union, expresses our concern…

In the lead up to Christmas, Qantas management has decided to announce a profit downgrade to the stock market signalling too that over the next 12 months 1000 positions will go from the Qantas group. As is always the case with media releases, there is no detail about the jobs/positions…

Your ASU National Negotiating Team (NNT) has now had five meetings with Jetstar about our new Agreement and unfortunately we feel like we are marking time and getting nowhere. At our last meeting on 28th November, 2013, we told Jetstar it was time to take our claims seriously and we…

The ASU and ALAEA bargaining representatives together with the National Negotiating Team met with Emirates management on Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th November in continuing negotiations for the next Agreement to succeed the Emirates Agreement 2011.  [Download the full bulletin below]    Emirates Bulletin, 5 December 2013

Universal quality public services and decent work are goals of economic development, to which international trade is but a means. Trade treaty rules should not force privatisation, nor interfere with the restoration or expansion of public services, where experiments with private provision fail or are rejected by democratically-elected governments. Trade…

This edition contains the following items: Promised increases to child care worker salaries latest hit by Abbott's cuts; FirstEnergy Corp – one of the largest electric power corporations in the United States; National Executive Resolution - calls Audit Commission (Government) - Opposition (ALP) - and all UNIONS to oppose privatisation…

Climate change threatens everything for which the labour movement stands including fairness, social justice and decent work. This was the message UNI Chief Philip Jennings delivered in a keynote speech to the W3 International Conference in Toronto. You can read this article on the UNI website by clicking here Invited…

The ASU has expressed its great concern at reports the Federal Government will cut child care funding by reneging on deals made with the sector to provide money to attract and retain child care centre staff who currently receive very low pay. Hitting child care centres with reduced funding is…