First Nations People of Australia have a right to self-determination, being the first peoples of this country. This means we have a right to determine who we want to represent us as First Nations Students Officer.

The Higher Education Act (2005) requires by law that University Council members have “an appreciation of the values of a University”. Given RMIT values include being “agents of positive change for our students, the community and beyond”, it is simply untenable that Ziggy Switkowski continues in his role of RMIT chancellor or as a Council member whilst chair of Crown Resorts Board .

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.

*update* National Cabinet is due to meet on August 27 and apparently discuss this issue however we will keep this petition up until our demands are met. Your voice matters. Please share this petition widely. Scott Morrison has said we must ”learn to live” with COVID-19 once we reach an 80% vaccination threshold of adults. This leaves 36% of the population unvaccinated, including most young people under 16 years old. The health toll on young people could be a disaster. Learning to live with the virus poses an unacceptable health risk until all ages under 16 are vaccinated. The National Plan and vaccine thresholds must be updated and include young people. We are concerned about young people returning to school unvaccinated for the following reasons; 1. Compared to previous variants, the delta variant is more virulent in young people. The Western Australian AMA former President Andrew Miller in WA Today states "The other real worry is that about 40 per cent of kids still have symptoms at four months, and 7 per cent have disabling physical or mental issues at six months, which can lead into long COVID syndrome." 2. Compared to previous variants, the delta variant has a 10-15 times higher transmissibility in young people. To date, young people are disproportionately affected. In Victoria, 45% of infections are in children and teenagers. In New South Wales, the figure is 30%. (22/8/21) Note these disproportionate infection rates are occurring in the context of remote learning in Victoria and NSW. Concerningly in the regional area of Shepparton, where school remained open for some of the current statewide lockdown, every school has become an exposure site and is now closed with multiple children, young people and their families now infected. The infection rates could rise further if students return onsite before being vaccinated. Unlike most workplaces, once students return to classrooms, social distancing will be practically impossible. Furthermore, adequate air ventilation, filtration and monitoring infrastructure, at this stage, does not exist. 3. The Doherty report was written before the recent evidence that indicates that the transmissibility of the Delta variant is much higher in young people. The Doherty model's rationale for excluding young people in their vaccine quotas rests on the assumption that "[e]xpanding the vaccine program to the 12-15 year age group has minimal impact on transmission and clinical outcomes for any achieved level of vaccine uptake". This is outdated.  More recent epidemiological modelling indicates that the necessity for heavier social distancing measures will be reduced if 5-15 year olds are included in the vaccination strategy (McBryde et al. 2021). Both the NSW and Victorian Chief Health Officers have recognised that young people are now a vector for broader community transmission. 4. As school staff we are acutely aware of the mental health challenges that students face under lockdown. However, returning students to onsite learning as a predominantly unvaccinated group and into an unsafe environment is not a solution.

My life would be very different if I could hop on a bus or a train or a tram whenever I wanted. Right now going anywhere takes a lot of planning and is not affordable for me, because Public Transport is inaccessible. For over forty years people with disabilities have been campaigning for the same access to transport as everyone else, to have the same access to jobs, work and community, but for many of us lockdown life is normal life. Previous governments have not kept their promises. The Disability Discrimination Act (1992) requires that all infrastructure is fully compliant with the Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 (DSAPT) by 31 December 2022. That’s 500 days away. And we are woefully behind. Only 15% of Melbourne’s Tram Network is accessible, and buses, trains and taxis across regional Victoria fail daily to meet the needs of residents with disabilities. THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE ANDREWS GOVERNMENT CAN DEAL WITH THE SOLUTION ONCE AND FOR ALL We want to see a commitment from the state government to deliver universal access in the next term of government. This would contribute to our economic recovery and deliver a more comfortable, efficient Public Transport system for all Victorians. It would also help Victoria meet its commitment to halve emissions by 2030. And it’s not just the disability community that will benefit from universal access. Parents with prams, older Victorians and people wishing to avoid increasing traffic congestion will all reap the rewards of these upgrades. TAKE ACTION: SEND AN EMAIL TO MINISTER CARROLL HERE Support our community of disability activists by reaching out to the Minister for Public Transport, Ben Carroll, and call on him and the Victorian government to take action for universally accessible Public Transport. Jess and the DRC Campaigns Team

Victorian and South Australian arts workers are stranded in NSW with their work cancelled or finished and no way to get home. Their applications to return home have been ignored or rejected without reason. They are now facing many more months of separation from their loved ones, with no job, income, or guaranteed accommodation. Sign the petition to bring them home. Jasmine Vaughns I am in the cast of Come From Away and travelled to Sydney for this work on the 25th of May. Shortly after opening the season I was stood down on the 25th of June due to the latest COVID outbreak. I applied for an exemption to return to my home/Victoria three and a half weeks ago. I was denied last night and am now going through the taxing process of re-applying all over again. My reason for doing so is that my mental health has suffered greatly being isolated here in Sydney. Suffering from anxiety and panic disorder I need to return to my home to be in the care of my partner and family. I get COVID tested weekly, have had my first dose of the vaccine and provided all documentation and evidence I could to support my application, yet still was denied. My only reason for being here was for work, and now that it can no longer continue currently, I simply wish to go home. Zelia Kitoko I travelled from Naarm to Gadigal land in January 2021 to commence a contract with Hamilton Australia. I was stood down as of June 26 2021 due to covid restrictions. My mother in Melbourne has been unwell and I am her only child and carer. I have not been able to return to her after many attempts and 6 weeks of waiting with minimal communication or clarity. It's been very invalidating and incredibly stressful to be stuck here without any consideration. Deirdre Khoo I'm a new performer in the industry. I moved to Sydney from Melbourne in early May for a temporary contract with the Darlinghurst Theatre Company for the tour of ONCE. My contract in Sydney was meant to go to early August, and a tour to regional NSW and Melbourne was going to happen after. A few weeks after the NSW stay-at-home orders, the company was stood down after seeing no possibility of the production going ahead. By this time the Victorian borders had shut for anyone ins NSW. I have not only lost my capacity to generate income, but also lose the ability to get back home to Victoria, where I am a resident. My accommodation in Sydney ended as per originally arranged, and I have moved into a colleague's nan place, who have very graciously opened their arms to me in this time of need. I am still covering partial rent and entirety of bills in Melbourne, while also providing a small amount to make up for my costs at my current accommodation. While this financial struggle does not come to me as large an issue in this time as compared to many, I have been experiencing anxiety and my mental health has been exponentially deteriorating from the lockdown. This is because I am unable to return to my place of residence and be in my own space, even after declaring that I will strictly follow the Victorian health orders to self-isolate and avoid contact with the Victorian community for their wellbeing. Andrew Coshan I am an Actor who travelled to Sydney on the 30th of May to begin rehearsals for Merrily We Roll Along at the Hayes Theatre. We were four days away from opening night when the lockdown which began on June 25th meant we had to postpone. At this point it was only meant to be for a week, so we planned to move opening night seven days later. But as the lockdowns got extended it became obvious that we could not plan when lockdown would end, and we were officially stood down on July 27th. Because we were now out of contract, we could try get back to our home state, but by this point the Victorian border was closed. I have now spent over eight weeks in this lockdown. I have stayed in NSW over three weeks longer than I ever planned to. I have tried, and am still trying to get back to Victoria, but have so far only been denied entry to the state that I call home. I have never lived in Sydney before. I don’t have family in Sydney. And I now feel like a burden on the associates that I’m staying with, but I have nowhere I can go. Kathleen Moore I take work in traveling theatre shows because they provide very good salaries and when in work, I am able to help pay for the hefty mortgage and bills my husband and I are responsible for.  Performers’ contracts are generally very short, and do not provide consistent pay throughout a year. Therefore, I need to be able to make my proper salary when I am employed, in order to help save money for the time when I am not under contract and the show closes.  The Victorian Government not only has a duty of care for its Residents who are currently within Victorian borders, it also has a duty of care for those working Victorians stranded away from their loved ones and homes. Bring Victorian workers HOME!

A Single Agreement wipes a clear baseline from the current Professional Staff Agreement, effectively forcing a fight to simply include existing conditions which have been stripped through simplification. Act NOW to show your support for continuing to use separate agreements at UTS. If a Single Agreement is made in this round of bargaining the prospect of returning to Separate Agreements in the future are slim. Your signature matters, as does the signature of colleagues you refer to this page. Petitions delivered directly to university managements have worked before to protect staff conditions.

I’m a proud union member/supporter of the public sector. Public servants dedicate their work to providing quality services and support to our communities. When you won the election in 2017, you asked public servants to support urgent budget repair, and accept a wage increase of $1,000 per year. Now, we are asking you to support them. We are asking you to support the WA public sector that keeps this state running.

The latest IPCC report is grave. The conservative targets set by the Paris Climate Agreement were set to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We are now currently on track to reach that level of warming in 2040. At that point, almost 1 billion people will face life-threatening heat waves at least once every 5 years. That's in addition to more floods, more droughts, worse heat, and rising sea levels. 1.5 degrees however is now a best case scenario. The report estimates that if we reach a 'high emissions future scenario' - which is consistent with what we're currently on track for - global warming above pre-industrial levels would rise to 5.7 degrees Celsius by 2100. That level of warming would be catastrophic. We need urgent action to address the climate crisis right now. The IPCC report argues that without "immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions", curbing emissions to even 2 degrees Celsius will be "beyond reach". Nowhere in the world is the level of immediate and large scale reductions required to meet these targets seen. Especially not in Australia. Australia ranks sixth highest in the world for greenhouse gas emissions per capita. When you consider greenhouse gasses emitted by Australian exported coal that figure expands significantly. Despite Australian emissions disproportionately escalating the climate crisis our government has displayed a commitment to expanding the fossil fuel industry. The government’s “Gas-Led Recovery” will see gas-fired power plants built to meet Australia’s growing energy requirements. The burning of gas will emit more greenhouse gasses, in particular methane which is even more dangerous than co2.