Industrial relations legislation, regulations and policies have a very significant impact on the lives of workers. Their shape is determined by the political party that forms government. That's why the ASU takes a serious interest in election campaigns and that's why this page of resources exists. The ASU is not in the business of telling anyone how they must vote, however, we believe it is part of our role to advise our members and subscribers about matters that impact them as workers. It would be remiss of the ASU if we were not to provide our members with advice on which political parties' policies are best or least suited to progressing the interests of workers. Unions are, after all, advocates for working people and it is our job to understand the workplace environment on both a technical and practical basis. Our work also crosses over into some other policy areas and so, where relevant, we'll provide our visitors with information on those concerns as well. ASU Queensland Services Branch Secretary David Smith is standing as an ALP Senate candidate for Queensland at this election. We support David in this pursuit because he clearly understands the needs of ASU members and workers in general, having spent so many years representing them through the Union. David believes there is a lot of room for improvement in workplace relations, and he wants to make a contribution to those improvements. You can read David's candidate letter here. We hope you find the election resources on this page useful. Paul Slape ASU National Secretary PS: Remember to visit this page regularly for updates.    Threat of a return to WorkChoices The ASU believes that a return to WorkChoices (whatever the name) is a very real threat under an Abbott Government. Despite Tony Abbott's assurances that WorkChoices is "dead, buried and cremated", the fact the Liberal Party has mixed its messages with comments about improving "flexibility" and "tweaking" shows they can't be trusted. Even Tony Abbott himself says you can't always believe what he says (watch the interview on The 7.30 Report). We also know that Mr Abbott has left himself loads of room to make changes without touching the legislation - there are regulations that have a major impact on workplaces. It's cynical and misleading to the Australian public who are not fully versed in how Government can fundamentally change the industrial landscape with a pen stroke. But unions, being IR specialists, are not misled and we will advise our members. Read more about this here: "Abbott's "tweaks" leave back door open for worst of WorkChoices to return". Some say actions speak louder than words. You can read a detailed account of Tony Abbott's record on workplace matters here: Tony Abbott's Ministerial Record On 4 August, unions have written to Tony Abbott asking him to clarify his position on some of the key workplace issues at stake. You can read our letter here.    Important issues for the 2010 federal election Workplace issues - industrial relations As a union, the ASU's business is to care about what people experience in their roles as workers. Therefore we encourage our members and friends to think about these issues when deciding who they will vote for at the next election. Some of the particular areas of concern have been: Return to WorkChoices laws (see also above) Access to unfair dismissal laws Work-life balance, see also recent news Quality of workers' family life is getting worse Equal pay, see also our Pay Up campaign for SACS workers Job and income security Superannuation (see below). Protection of employee entitlements (see below). Climate Change - Environment (see below). Occupational health and safety, in particular the current process of harmonisation (see below). Education (see below). Superannuation Experts have said for a long time that the current rate of superannuation at 9% is dramatically insufficient to ensure that Australians have an adequate and comfortable retirement in the future. A move to 12% (which is the current ALP policy if re-elected), although welcome, is still short of the 15% that many agree is the minimum level required. It's an area that we will continue to campaign on so that we can make sure that our members and all workers can live comfortably after their working lives. For more information, visit the ASU's Superannuation page or read the ACTU super factsheet. Protection of employee entitlements Unions have long fought for the rights of workers to receive their full entitlements when the company they work for goes bust. The GEERS scheme was brought in by the Howard Government to deal with these situations, but the protections had strict limits. The ALP has now promised to enshrine the protections in law as well as to markedly improve the standards in "The Fair Entitlements Guarantee". This is a great step forward, but the unions will continue to lobby for the protection of full entitlements. Climate Change - Environment Why are unions concerned about climate change and the environment? It's something that all national economies are going to have to grapple with and this will affect workers. Whether it means job losses or job creation will depend on how wise individual governments are at ushering in new policies. The union movement has been talking about smart green jobs for many years now, and we believe that governments who cleverly approach the challenges posed by climate change and other environmental factors are well placed to shape a very positive future for generations of Australian workers. Political parties that deny change is needed or delay action indefinitely will squander our chances of being a leading economy that has adapted and the benefits that will be generated. For more details, read the ACF-ACTU jointly commissioned report Creating Jobs, Cutting Pollution. Occupational Health & Safety The ASU supports the establishment of harmonised national OHS laws as long as they do not result in a compromise or reduction of protections or standards for workers in any existing jurisdiction. The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) has given repeated assurances that harmonisation will not result in a lesser system for anyone, but we are watching and scrutinising all stages of this process to ensure workers are protected. You can download the unions' harmonisation submission here. Education With skills shortages throttling Australia's capacity to grow, education becomes all the more critical for preparing the future workforce. What is needed are policies that include funding for training and apprenticeships that are targeted to our current as well as future needs.      Other resources Get your election gear at the ASUshop including resource kits and t-shirts. Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) or directly to ACTU news page Your Rights at Work campaign website ACTU: Twitter - Facebook - YouTube - MySpace Centre for Policy Development (CPD) "Thinking Points" blog Abbott Facts website from the ALP    ASU spokespeople for the 2010 federal election campaign ASU National Secretary Paul Slape is the spokesperson for the ASU's national campaign. For further information, please e-mail Paul Slape or ring 03 9342 1401. For comment from our state ASU Branches, please e-mail ASU National Communications Officer Brigid Marasco or ring 03 9342 1469, who will be able to put you in touch with the relevant officials. Unions are the voice of their members, YOUR VOICE. Click here to join the ASU. Remember, union fees are tax deductible.

Election news  E-mail  Political parties Following are links to the policy pages of the major political parties. ALP policy page Liberal policy page Nationals policy page Greens policy page    Questions  for Mr Abbott Unfair dismissal • Do you support the current unfair dismissal protections for all Australian workers and will you rule out any changes to the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code? Minimum standards • Do you support the universal application of the Fair Work Act National Employment Standards and will you rule out using the regulations to allow for a reduction in minimum conditions like annual leave and sick leave, including under flexibility arrangements in awards or agreements? • Do you agree that all workers, including young people, should be protected by a robust safety net of National Employment Standards and awards and will you rule out any moves to reduce the current safety net of minimum pay, conditions and rights -- including the minimum hours that young people are required to be paid for? • Will you rule out making changes to the way that minimum wages are set and commit to an entirely independent process by Fair Work Australia? Redundancy pay • Do you support the minimum redundancy entitlements for workers set out in the Fair Work Act, and will you rule out using the regulations to reduce these entitlements, to exclude some workers, or to prevent workers from reaching agreement with their employer on more generous entitlements in agreements? Individual Contracts • Do you support collective bargaining and will you rule out the increased use of or scope for individual contracts or individual flexibility clauses in agreements or awards or other mechanisms?

Media links National The ABC's election coverage Crikey (full content for subscribers) The Australian The Australian Financial Review NineMSN (Channel 9) Yahoo7 (Channel 7) New South Wales The Sydney Morning Herald The Daily Telegraph Victoria: The Age The Herald Sun Queensland The Courier Mail South Australia The Advertiser Western Australia The West Australian Tasmania The Mercury The Examiner ACT The Canberra Times NT Northern Territory News Some comic relief:  Top 10 rights  regained through  the Fair Work Act 1. Abolition of AWAs - critically important move to restore the ability of employees to act collectively and to avoid exploitation of individuals. 2. Restoration of unfair dismissal rights for all employees - including employees employed by enterprises with less than 100 employees. 3. Employers obliged to bargain 'in good faith' - this is a new obligation on employers to bargain with employees through their appointed bargaining representatives. 4. The Better Off Overall Test [BOOT] - assessment of all new collective agreements against the modern award and the NES - all employees must be better off. 5. Abolition of the so-called 'Fair Pay and Conditions Standards' - in reality just five minimum terms and conditions of employment that did not adequately protect workers from exploitation. 6. Re-instatement of a proper safety net of terms and conditions - done via a modern award system and the National Employment Standards. 7. Minimum wage adjustments by FWA - now undertaken via a transparent process by FWA not the Fair Pay Commission. 8. Right of employees to be represented by their union in bargaining - the union is automatically the bargaining agent for its members. 9. Agreements now again subject to a public approval process through FWA - under WorkChoices it was a closed-door process by the Workplace Authority. 10. Prohibited content in relation to agreements abolished - this allows unions and employers to bargain more freely for conditions that suit individual workplaces best.