Since 1 January 2014 the Fair Work Commission (FWC) has been empowered to issue orders to employers to stop bullying that is happening in their workplaces. It may sound like a simple matter, but there are strict criteria that must be met before the FWC can determine bullying is actually…

Statement from Ged Kearney, President, ACTU: No Australian should be forced to live below the poverty line. For most people being unemployed is something they neither seek nor like to endure. But for many Australians, young and old, it is a harsh reality. Governments have a responsibility to help those…

Qantas has today announced a record profit of $1.53 billion, in no small part a result of the hard work and sacrifices made by ASU members and other staff. Cuts, restructures and redundancies have been the norm for years now and all the while ASU members across Australia have given…

A new report from the Inclusive Prosperity Commission exposes the inequality of the Turnbull’s Government’s obsession with trickle-down economics. The expert authors of the report "Inequality: The facts and figures" have found that rising inequality in Australia is having a destabilising effect on the economy. This report sits alongside global…

Today’s dual ABS releases on Average Weekly Earnings and the snapshot Labour Force data show that Australian workers continue to be affected by a two-pronged dampener on their living standards. The ABS data reveals: While the headline unemployment figure fell 0.1% to 5.7% in July, this masks the continuing disturbing…

The ACTU Executive has adopted a resolution authorising all means at the organisations disposal to be mobilised against the Turnbull Government’s racially discriminatory Community Development Program (CDP). The resolution will kick-start exploration of legal and legislative challenges to the program, as well as the mobilisation of campaign resources. The ACTU…

The ACTU, including Secretary Dave Oliver and Indigenous Officer Kara Keys, joined with affiliate unions and local Indigenous people in Darwin this morning to draw attention to the ongoing fight for wage justice for Indigenous Australians. The ACTU is in Darwin this week for its National Executive meeting as a…

The impact on ordinary Australians of privatising essential public assets and services will be examined in a People’s Inquiry launched today by the global union Public Services International (PSI), of which the ASU is an affiliate. The People’s Inquiry into Privatisation will examine in detail community concerns, including those recently…

Yesterday the votes were counted in our protected action ballot and we are pleased to advise that ASU members at Maurice Blackburn and Zabulon have overwhelmingly voted in favour of each of the actions proposed on the ballot. This is a fantastic result and credit to all members and delegates…

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and unions are alarmed that the Federal Government intends to stop working people organising in their workplaces and accessing their unions. Minister for Employment Michaelia Cash has confirmed the Coalition will remove unions’ access to lunchrooms and place limits on visits to workplaces.…