Rights at Work

You'd be forgiven for feeling duped by this Federal Government. The Australian Services Union well remembers Tony Abbott's Paid Parental Leave (PPL) election promise in 2013 because we predicted it wouldn't be delivered. We weren't happy to be proven right because the welfare of future generations is at stake. What…

From staffing call centres, libraries and airports to repairing essential services and providing emergency community services, especially after natural disasters, ASU members are working unsociable hours so that others can enjoy their weekends, nights and holidays. They miss out on vital time with friends and family, and deserve to be…

Today the Senate defeated many of the unfair proposals in the Turnbull Government's Fair Work Amendment Bill, rejecting the prospect of more exploitation of the most vulnerable workers in our community. The Opposition, Greens and Cross Bench Senators successfully challenged and defeated the most unfair elements of the Bill including…

Australian Unions are meeting this week in Canberra for the 2015 ACTU Occupational Health Safety and Workers Compensation Conference to discuss how to tackle significant workplace safety issues and barriers. This comes as Safe Work Australia figures show there have been 126 workplace fatalities in Australia already this year (to…

A report released yesterday by Dr Joanna Howe of the University of Adelaide Law School, an expert in temporary labour migration, has vindicated the ASU and others' fears that the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) seriously risks access to jobs for the local workforce, as well as undermining Australian labour…

To coincide with the Senate Inquiry into the economic security of women in retirement, a problem of financial hardship that affects households all over Australia, the ASU has launched a survey seeking views from our members and supporters. We encourage you to complete the survey as it will assist us…

On 25 September, the UN's new 2030 Agenda was adopted in the presence of the world's top leaders at a special session of the Annual General Assembly of the United Nations. This year also marks the 70th Anniversary of the UN, which lends additional momentum to this new global agenda…

The Productivity Commission's draft recommendations would increase inequality, drive down wages, strip workers of many rights and create a less prosperous Australia – they must be rejected by the Federal Government. Unions have lodged their submissions with the Productivity Commission with the ASU strongly defending the rights of vulnerable workers…

A rally in Melbourne today will be held in protest against employer groups' continued efforts to attack the wages of low paid workers. The ASU and unions argue that assaults on penalty rates don't just drive down the living standards of those who currently earn them, but will have adverse…

This weekend – September 12 and 13 – thousands of union members, their neighbours, colleagues, friends and families will take part in a doorknock across more than twenty marginal federal electorates to talk about the issues that matter to them in lead up to the election. Workers' rights and jobs,…