We are Care and Custodial officers who work for contractor Ventia under the Department of Justice (“DoJ”) Court Security and Custodial Services (“CS&CS”) contract. Some of us have worked in this role for 20 years and have not once received long service leave. The contract constantly changes providers and has been mismanaged since it was privatised by the Department of Justice in 2000. We work in a challenging role and a risky environment, transporting persons in custody to hospitals and keeping a watch on persons in custody who have left the prisons for the day, for whatever reason. The contract in its form is simply unsustainable. We deal with a high turnover of staff, untrained guards (often subcontractors the company uses to keep costs down), low morale, and low paid, insecure, casualized jobs. After being stonewalled on two occasions by the company and the Fair Work Commission when we tried to take protected industrial action, we are calling for the WA State Government to bring the contract back in house and provide us with safe, secure and reliable jobs we can count on.

Cutting RDOs from new employees would create a second class of employees who will have limited access to our union-won entitlements. We should not be asked to sell out our future colleagues who cannot vote on this agreement. We are deeply concerned about what this divisive proposal signals for the future of the fund. RDOs are a fantastic entitlement and contribute to the positive workplace culture that makes Cbus so good - for employees and fund members.

Safety on the rail network is of paramount importance, and by trying to erode our conditions the NSW Government is lowering those safety standards and putting us all in danger. They are also trying to remove guards from trains - we believe this is an unacceptable risk. Australia has some of the best employment protections in the world thanks to unions fighting for generations to ensure a fair go for all Aussies. But it's a constant battle to maintain these conditions, and the NSW Government is trying to water down our rights and protections. We are fighting to save these for ourselves, for all other public service workers and for the wider community as a whole. The NSW Government imposed a wage freeze on all public servants last year, which amounted to a pay cut in real terms, even for those sectors who had already negotiated higher increases. This is despite a number of senior bureaucrats receiving huge pay rises, sending a clear message to essential workers that they do not matter. All workers deserve a fair pay rise in the current economic environment, and we're fighting to prevent the government from using the pandemic as an excuse to sell us all short.

All people should be treated equally wherever they work, study or access goods and services, regardless of who they are or who they love. But Victorian laws currently allow faith-based organisations to refuse service to someone based on their sexual orientation or because they are transgender, and allow religious schools to dismiss or expel LGBTQ+ students, staff and teachers. People can also be discriminated against based on their marital or parental status. The Victorian government has announced it will be changing these laws this year and we know the conservative Christian lobby will fight to have the proposal watered down. We must come together in our thousands to show our community supports the changes, and to ensure the strongest possible reform. Will you sign our petition today?

Workers have carried Australia through this pandemic. Many essential workers are still at constant risk of community or workplace exposure to COVID. As we move into the next phase of the pandemic, all workers, including casuals, must have access to Paid Isolation Leave to reduce the risk of COVID spreading, take the steps needed to keep everyone safe and without losing any income. The requirements for workers to test, trace, isolate or quarantine are going to be with us for an extended period, and could increase for people working in frontline jobs if they experience more regular exposure at work. Workers will need Paid Isolation Leave to get us through this next phase of the pandemic rather than rely on depleted or non-existent leave balances. We need Paid Isolation Leave to protect our families and communities, and stop the spread of COVID-19. Paid Isolation Leave is critical to make sure workers or someone they care for can safely test, isolate or quarantine – and keep their families, communities and workmates safe.

Australia needs to be vaccinated as soon as possible. But we’re running last in the race to get it done. We won’t reach the required levels of COVID vaccination without more vaccine supplies and a faster roll out. We can’t rely on a system where workers have to get their jab on weekends or during lunch breaks. Monash University allows full-time workers to get vaccinated on work time. But it won’t pay casuals to do the same. No worker should have to choose between getting vaccinated and paying the bills. The latest plan from the Morrison government will see 2 million jabs per week being administered from September. We need paid leave to attend vaccination and recover from routine side effects. Last year workers in our Union campaigned for and won paid pandemic leave and one day a week carer’s leave for staff caring and home-schooling. This year, together, we can win paid vaccination leave. But we need to work together. We need a strong voice to demand nation-wide paid vaccination leave. We need it for the University, and we need it for our colleagues and students. Sign the petition for paid vaccination leave. Join your union.

The Titanic’s owner, Louis must pay our stolen super and wages back now. Wage theft is a crime in Victoria, our fellow union members fought hard to make that the case. We will report our employer to the Victorian Wage Theft Inspectorate to make sure he can’t get away with stealing from us or any other of his future workers. Louis employs a lot of young workers at The Titanic Williamstown. We don’t want them to think that it’s okay for employers to treat us so badly. We want younger workers to know that this is not acceptable and that they’re entitled to stand up for themselves and demand to be treated with respect at work. That’s why we’ve come together in our union, and why we’re fighting back. Louis, you ignored us when we contacted you individually. Have we got your attention now?

NECA CEO Oliver Judd is opposing wage rises for low-paid electrical apprentices. Judd, a former corporate lawyer, wants to block increases for hundreds of apprentices employed by Electro Group Training in NSW and the ACT. The ETU has negotiated an enterprise agreement that will deliver modest improvements to wages and conditions for our NSW and ACT members at group trainer Electro Group. These apprentices have previously been subject to basic award conditions. NECA is not a party to the EBA, in fact NECA group training is the main competitor to Electro Group. Yet despite this, Judd has asked the Fair Work Commission to block registration of the Electro Group EBA. The NECA CEO, who was paid over $250,000 in 2020, seeks to stop apprentices benefiting from a union EBA they spent months negotiating. ETU members at Electro Group fought hard to get their union EBA. If Judd gets his way, Electro Group apprentices will be stuck on some of the lowest wages paid to any group of Australian workers.

In historically male-dominated occupations such as blue-collar trades, amenities for workers are often an afterthought or not provided at all. When they do exist, they are often very unhygienic, unsanitary, far away from the worksite, locked or in an unsafe location. The effects are worse for women who have a wider range of needs for bathroom amenities such as menstruation, pregnancy, breastfeeding and more. The laws that regulate bathrooms and amenities in workplaces MUST be updated to force companies and workplaces to follow the rules and provide good amenities for ALL workers. The more support we have in this campaign, the more likely we’ll be able to force positive change and make our workplaces safer and more inclusive for everyone.

Hutchison Ports Australia have disgracefully sacked respected Indigenous worker Kevin “Bones” Kelly from their Port Botany terminal. Hutchison has never accused Kevin of any wrongdoing. They say Kevin is not fit to perform his duties, but they have no medical evidence to support this claim. Kevin’s own doctor cleared him for work after a few weeks on workers’ compensation. After he was cleared, he carried out full duties without issue for 11 shifts before he was stood down and then sacked. Kevin is one of many workers recently sacked by Hutchison’s at Port Botany, including a high number of Indigenous workers. Hutchinson’s poor record of Indigenous worker promotion and retention indicates that it is a company rife with systemic racism. Thomas Mayor, National Indigenous Officer of the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) said: "There was no genuine reason for sacking Kevin and Hutchison have a record of disproportionately sacking Indigenous workers. There can only be one word to describe the company's management, and everyone should learn the truth of it. Hutchison Ports is racist." Kevin was a world champion boxer. He is respected across the maritime industry and across the community. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with the Maritime Union of Australia until he is reinstated – We call on Hutchinson’s to reinstate Kevin “Bones” Kelly, end the sackings and end the systemic racism in the company’s management! Paul Keating, Sydney Branch Secretary of the MUA said: "I have known Kevin for many years. He is a good friend and greatly respected by his comrades on the waterfront and across the MUA. This sacking is utterly unjust. In all my years as a union official, I have never seen the treatment of a worker by an employer in this way. The MUA will not stand for this from Hutchison or any employer. The MUA expects reinstatement immediately."

Coles in-store Butchers have completed an apprenticeship and have extensive product knowledge. Butchers and Meat Packers inform customers on best cuts of meat for a particular receipt and how to cook, prepare and handle that meat. All this will be gone as Coles will now have it’s product processed at a third-party facility and will be brought to the store either gas flushed or cryovaced. In-store butchers and Meat Packers will be replaced with a store service rep that may not have ever worked with meat before or for that matter may not have ever cooked a leg of lamb before. When the public seems to want to know more about their food, and prepare their own food, Coles have decided to offer less. This is a shameful move that shows Coles cares more about profits than people. The only thing going DOWN DOWN at Coles will be the service…. Sign the petition and send Coles a clear message that this is unacceptable. At the height of this pandemic, these workers were putting food on our tables. What Coles is doing is wrong…. Help these workers get a better deal. Authorised by Matthew Journeax Acting Federal Secretary AMIEU 39 Lytton Road East Brisbane QLD 4169

Supermarket workers are risking the health of themselves and their families to keep warehouses running, shelves stocked and fuel pumps running. Coles and Woolworths should not pocket sky-high profits made off these essential workers' backs without recognising workers' sacrifices. In an email to Coles workers, the Chief Operations Officer, Matt Swindells, said "Finally, this week you will have heard that Coles is awarding a discretionary pay increase of 2.5% for all our wages-paid store team members. All team members covered by the 2017 Enterprise Agreement will receive the well-deserved increase from 6 September 2021 and you’ll see it in your payslips as of Wednesday 15 September." What is well-deserved is pandemic pay that is adequate (2.5% doesn't keep up with inflation which lies at 3.8%) and recognises the incredible sacrifice of working with the Delta variant spreading in the community.