Union calls for inquiry on mine conditions
ROSEBERY — The Australian Workers' Union has called on the new Tasmanian Labor government to hold a public inquiry into mining conditions on the state's west coast. Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly's JULIA PERKINS spoke to local miners PAUL O'BRYAN, an AWU delegate at the Pasminco mine, and PETER CAUSON and IAN JAMIESON from the Renison Bell mine about the call.
"Over the last eight to 10 years, it's been harder and harder for unions to maintain the conditions which we've had in the past. Just about every mining condition is under threat at the moment", Jamieson said.
"Conditions have been lost since the early '90s, primarily because of contracted labour. People are now working up to 84 hours per week — that's 12-hour shifts per day, seven days a week. And earnings have dropped.
"With regards to safety, there was yet another death in Queenstown last week."
"At the mine where I work", Causon said, "my employer said that if we don't sign the new enterprise bargaining agreement, he'll put all of us off and only remploy on the condition that we sign."
"The only reason he was allowed to do that", said O'Bryan, "was because there isn't strong union representation on site. Fifteen years ago you wouldn't have walked onto that site unless you were a union member. Over the last 15 years there has been an erosion of union rights and union privileges."
Jamieson said that the union "has allowed contractors onto sites, and we've seen an erosion of conditions as a consequence. I'm really glad the AWU have called a public inquiry because it is culpable for our loss of conditions."
"They've got to take up workers' health and safety", Causon said. "Safety seems to have completely gone by the wayside."
O'Bryan added, "The employer preaches the gospel of 'workplace safety', but any employee knows that so much of the work required necessitates unsafe procedure to get it done in time. But, the employee is liable under 'duty of care'.
"There is such a prevalence among contracted work of serious incidents because the employer doesn't have to deal with the union on safety issues. How many top executives or mine managers have been brought to court for the fatalities in their mines?
"The 'duty of care' gives them a way out. It was on the table when the Labor government was in, and it's played right into the Liberals' hands. The union has lost so much respect. If our grandfathers could see the way we treat unionism today, they'd roll over in their graves."
O'Bryan talks about what he calls "the principles of unionism". "The same sense of fear that was around at the turn of the century — that we are beholden to the employer because of a general shortage of work — is creeping back. But back then you had the maritime and shearers' strikes and a mine at Williamsford go out on strike for three years. Are we prepared to do that? There's trepidation about going out for just one day now.
"That's because there's not the strength in unionism. As a union delegate, my job is to instil a bit of pride that you're a unionist and stick by the principles of a fair day's work for a fair day's pay.
"It's too easy to pick people off individually now; that's what an individual contract does."