unions
Dean Mighell
You thought you’d seen it all? Well, think again. Someone’s out to get Dean Mighell and he seems to have delivered a dual hit of allegedly squandering his members’ money on both business class airfares and, potentially, transgender prostitutes. It’s all very British.
Combined with last year’s expulsion from The Party, this may well be his death knell in public life. But then, Australia’s a small and talentless place in some ways; our best and brightest often leave to work overseas before they reach a level of seniority and arrogance that produces sexcapades and Trevor Flugge, so Mighell’s years of experience will probably continue to be at a premium until he retires.
MORE than $27,000 was splurged on accommodation.
AT least $10,000 was spent on meals, drinks, valet service, the internet, in-house movies, the mini-bar and other items.
A PHONE call from Mr Mighell’s hotel room was made to a transsexual escort named Suzana.
Touted as a “shemale”, Suzana says on a website: “I am a sexy and very convincing ‘TV girl’ escort. I work in central London from a nice, quiet and clean flat.”
Just in case you’re as inquisitive as I am, here is Suzana’s site [nsfw] and I wish her the best and hope that her custom increases through the level of traffic it is undoubtedly now experiencing from gleeful members of the Australian political scene.
University news: sackings, industrial action
There is a lot going on in Victoria’s higher education sector. Some of the largest ever mass-redundancies in Australian university history, as well as a growing mood for industrial action over university administration refusals to seriously collectively bargain.
Deakin
Staff at Deakin University want a new collective agreement. The NTEU has produced a video explaining what is at stake and why staff need to join the union.
Deakin staff speak about collective bargaining from NTEU Victoria on Vimeo.
Victoria University
Victoria University Vice-Chancellor announced on 17 October the largest ever mass-redundancy in Australian university history.
The NTEU is running a campaign to protest the redundancies and make the university return to the bargaining table. Like Deakin, VU senior management have refused to seriously bargain.
You can support the staff at Victoria University by sending an email to the Vice Chancellor.
Hands off our union - NUW at war
The NUW - the National Union of Workers - is currently experiencing an internal dispute over proposed rules changes that would abolish all state branches other than Victoria and NSW.
Dear NUW Member,
Two weeks ago the National Council of the NUW resolved to change the rules of the Union to establish a new centrally-controlled General Branch. This Branch would absorb all State Branches of the NUW other than NSW and Victoria.
This proposal was rejected by the NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australian Branches.
Despite this rejection, the National Office of the NUW will be holding a postal ballot from October 17th to November 10th 2008 to change the rules to facilitate their plan. Ballot papers will be issued to all NUW members via mail in the near future.
The NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australian Branches of the NUW rejects any attempt to take away or reduce local democratic control from any State Branch of the Union.
These Branches of the NUW strongly urge Members to vote NO in the ballot for any proposed rule change.
Any attempt to take away the control of State Branches of the NUW from the Members is wrong. We will not support any change that will disadvantage Members nor will we support any push for a centralised branch that will abolish any State Branch.
Glen Milne: Rubbish Journalist
Glen Milne writes in the Sunday Telegraph:
Within Opposition ranks it has firmed the opinion that Rudd is intent on going to an election at the end of next year.
The evidence, apart from Gartrell’s enthusiasm for getting on with the job, is compelling. First, there’s history: every initially victorious Prime Minister in the modern era from Hawke (subsequent election 1984) and Howard (1998) sought to cement their incumbency by going to the polls within two years.
Second, economic uncertainty. Given the external pressures of the rolling subprime crisis, who knows what will happen electorally or economically? For Gartrell and Rudd, and Labor generally, the message has to be, while you’re ahead, go now.
Third, there’s WorkChoices. The obvious potency of this issue at the last election says go early while the electorate’s hurt and resentment towards the Coalition is still red raw.
Fourth: Opposition leadership. The dynamics of the Liberals’ internal leadership tensions are likely to be at their fruit-bearing peak at the end of 2009.
To get to the bottom of all this, I could call Julie Collins and ask what Tim Gartrell said last Monday. But I haven’t bothered.
Amazing - Glen Milne could have inquired with Labor about the committee meeting - you know, to get his facts straight, or at least do that “getting both sides of the story” thing that journalists are supposed to do. But he didn’t bother.
He also wrote in a separate article:
THE powerful Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) is poised to flex its industrial muscle after a successful meeting with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at The Lodge in Canberra on Australia Day.
A leaked union strategy document marked “confidential” reveals the MUA believes it has “strong support” from Mr Rudd and plans to push for new industrial relations arrangements that will drive up inflation.
The union wants a return to “pattern bargaining”, a technique to negotiate increased wages and conditions. However, opponents of pattern bargaining say it would also increase inflation and interest rates.
Amazing. Glen passed off as fact that the MUA’s industrial relations arrangements will drive up inflation, but we find out in the next paragraph that opponents of the MUA’s industrial policies are the ones that believe that. What happened to the neutral point of view that journalists were supposed to have?
Oh… that’s right. We’re talking about Glen Milne.