Strikes and industrial action

Fair Work Ombudsman to gain new powers

The federal government鈥檚 vulnerable workers legislation, which it says is to crack down on franchisee underpayments, would give the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) coercive powers to investigate unions and compulsorily obtain information from workers over suspected unlawful industrial action.

Employment Minister Senator Michaelia Cash said on August 16 the new law would mean the FWO could obtain evidence of "discrimination, coercion, conduct relating to false records, unprotected industrial action, accessorial liability, unfair dismissal [and] bullying claims".

Visy workers vote to strike indefinitely after union delegate sacked

More than 70 workers at Visy鈥檚 Dandenong plant voted on August 7 to maintain a peaceful picket and not return to work after an Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) delegate was sacked on August 4 for organising 鈥渋llegal industrial action鈥.

The workers, all members of the AMWU, had become increasingly angered by a series of provocative actions taken by Visy management in the weeks before the delegate was sacked.

Sydney bus drivers hold 'fare-free day'

Bus drivers across Sydney implemented a "fare-free day" on June 1 as part of their campaign of industrial action against the NSW government's plan to privatise buses in the inner west. Drivers from 12 depots around the city turned off their Opal Card machines and wore plain clothes to draw the attention of passengers to the threat to public bus services.

Colombia: Teachers strike for quality education enters fourth week

Colombia鈥檚 national teachers鈥 strike marked three weeks on June 1 as tens of thousands of education workers continue to pressure the government to respond to their demands for better working conditions, higher salaries and more investment in public education.

In the latest mass protest, about 300,000 teachers took to the streets on May 31 to call attention to education issues in major cities across the country, including Bogota, Cali, Medellin, Bucaramanga and Barranquilla.

Anti-poverty rebellion shuts down Colombia鈥檚 largest port city

A rebellion has been raging in Buenaventura - Colombia鈥檚 largest port city - since May 16, when residents decided to embark on massive anti-government marches to demand an end to chronic state neglect and abandonment, corruption, crime and armed conflict.

The government鈥檚 inability to attend to protesters鈥 demands has only spurred an escalation of protests that has not shown signs of calming, even though the mayor鈥檚 office issued a decree declaring a curfew and a ban on public demonstrations.

NTEU: no confidence in Murdoch management

At a packed meeting on November 25, National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) members at Murdoch University in Perth expressed no confidence in the university bargaining team and called on the Vice Chancellor to intervene in the negotiations.

They voted unanimously to begin industrial action with a stop work between 8.30am and 12.30pm on December 7.聽

They will be聽the first university workers in this round of collective bargaining to take industrial action.

Public sector national strike for better agreements

Members of the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) across the country walked off the job for 24 hours on September 9 in protest at the federal government's refusal to make reasonable offers on pay and conditions in agency bargaining throughout the federal public service.

The strike involves staff in key agencies, including Human Services, Medicare, Centrelink, Child Support, the Tax Office, Defence, the Bureau of Meteorology, Agriculture and Water Resources and Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Border Force staff stood down over work bans

Border Force staff, who imposed work bans in support of their campaign for a new enterprise bargaining agreement on November 4, were stood down without pay by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP), despite the industrial action being authorised by the Fair Work Commission. The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) condemned the department's action as a heavy-handed escalation of the long-running dispute.

Victorian government fails to stop rail strike

Over the past two weeks the Victorian Labor government has ramped up its hostile rhetoric towards rail and tram workers fighting to defend their rights. This culminated in joint legal action taken in the Fair Work Commission with rail boss Metro Trains against the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) in a bid to stop railway workers from taking strike action on September 4. It failed to stop the strike going ahead.

Tram and rail industrial action steps up

An emotional and highly charged stopwork meeting of hundreds of tram workers jammed into Trades Hall on August 27 to hear a report on their dispute with Yarra Trams. Yarra Trams and Metro Rail workers had called off a planned four-hour strike on August 21 in the hope that the companies would present the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) with a better offer. The better offer never came so the tram workers struck for four hours on August 27. This was the first tram strike since 1997.

Immigration and Border Force staff strike

Staff of the Immigration and Border Force agency marked the first day of their newly merged federal department on July 1 by going on strike for the second time in a week. Two-hour stoppages and meetings took place at seaports, workplaces and international airports, including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Darwin, Perth and Adelaide. Significant disruption of services was reported.

PHOTOS: Strike at Sydney University

Students supported teachers and staff in their one-day strike at the University of Sydney on March 7. Read a explaining the reason for the strike. Photos: Peter Boyle.