BY RACHEL EVANS
MELBOURNE — Braving wet and windy conditions on September 26, 45 people came to Melbourne's Federal Court to support the prosecution of 30 companies over alleged breaches of the outworker and contractor provisions of the Clothing Trades Award.
The Textile Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia (TCFUA) lodged applications in the Federal Court against international brands producing surf wear, government department uniforms, police and army and corporate wear.
Puma, Rip Curl and Laura Ashley are three of the most well known companies facing charges over breaching the federal award.
Retail companies use outworkers to save money. These workers, often working in isolated homes and from non-English speaking backgrounds, are more easily exploited.
There are an estimated 300,000 outworkers across Australia, and working conditions are horrendous. Le Hai, one of the outworkers that the TCFUA is representing, commented, "I have no sick pay, no holiday pay and I work very long hours. I get $5 an hour."
The breaches the TCFUA are fighting in court include: hindering the award; failure to provide records; failure to include the labour time in work records; and non-disclosure of where work is being performed.
The companies are also being charged with not being registered with the Clothing Board of Reference and failing to provide the union with access to records. The unions often cannot get information about where work is going and who is doing it. Some corporations have failed to enter into written contracts with their suppliers, which would ensure outworkers receive award wages and conditions.
Retail companies use contractors to allocate work to outworkers, distancing themselves from the conditions the workers endure. But while the contractors, often called "middle agents", are skimming off the top, it is the big companies that dominate the industry that establish and maintain the production chain.
These latest cases take the total number of prosecutions launched by the union in relation to outworker exploitation to 100, covering 800 award breaches, in five years.
According to the TCFUA's Annie Delaney: "Outworkers in the clothing industry are the most exploited workers in Australia. The TCFUA believes that [these] prosecutions will assist in improving compliance in Victoria, where laws protecting clothing workers wages and conditions and regulating outwork are grossly inadequate.
"The TCFUA will be seeking maximum penalties of $10,000 per award breach which could mean some companies facing up to $100,000 in penalties."
Victoria is home to half of all outworkers across Australia, and the union is also fighting for legislative change in Victoria to protect outworkers.
It is trying to get parliament to pass the Outworkers (Improved Protection) Act 2002, which is in its second reading in Parliament. This legislation mirrors that which was passed with bipartisan support in NSW last year.
Previous prosecutions handled by the union have been settled, some at the door of the court. Some previous settlements have included correcting all award breaches and ensuring ongoing compliance with the award.
But the legal strategy has its limitations. Nike has admitted to award breaches in court, but was fined a paltry $15,000.
The legal proceedings are just one component of the campaign. Along with Fairwear, the union has been fighting to have retailers become accredited to the Home Workers Code of Practice, which stipulates standard conditions for outworkers. Some court action settlements have included the accused company agreeing to sign this code.
Legal proceedings, education campaigning on high schools, stunts and grass roots actions typify this campaign. As a union fighting a hard sector to organise, the "hidden workers" and the most exploited workforce in Australia, the TCFUA has been conducting a courageous fight.
For more information about the campaign and to get involved check out .
From Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly, October 16, 2002.
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