John Brumby needs to take tough action against union intimidation and thuggery to stop Victoria sinking back into an industrial Dark Age of union militancy and disruption. Melbourne’s train commuters have already suffered because of disputes between factions of the Rail Tram and Bus Union; now, the West Gate Bridge upgrade and anti-suicide safety barriers [...]

Reports that the Rail, Tram and Bus Union has agreed to drop its previous refusal to operate trains with “minor faults” in exchange for a 15 per cent pay rise sends the message that union coercion and intimidation will get results under the Rudd and Brumby governments. As a result, Victorians can look forward to [...]

Hansard: 13 March 2008 ASSEMBLY Health professionals: industrial action Mr CLARK (Box Hill) — The Brumby government’s handling of industrial relations is appalling. It is clear from what happened at question time yesterday that neither the Premier, nor the health minister, nor the industrial relations minister had a clue about what was going on with [...]

The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) industrial dispute statistics released today show that Victoria was responsible for more than two-thirds of all days lost due to industrial disputes in Australia last year. More than 33,000 working days were lost in Victoria in 2007 out of a national total of 49,700 days. The second-worst state [...]

Yesterday’s Federal Government release of draft National EmploymentStandards further highlights the conflicts between Victorian and FederalLabor over industrial relations, Shadow Minister for Industrial RelationsRobert Clark said. “State Industrial Relations Minister Rob Hulls continues to impose flexiblework arrangement obligations on Victorian employers that are at odds withthe standards released by Federal Labor,” Mr Clark said. The [...]

Victorian Industrial Relations Minister Rob Hulls has delivered a rebuffto Federal Labor’s moves for a uniform national industrial relationssystem by legislating to impose on Victorian employers a wide range of newobligations to customise work arrangements to suit the parental or carerresponsibilities of individual employees. The obligations are imposed by the Equal Opportunity (FamilyResponsibilities) Bill, which [...]

The Brumby Government has been forced to abandon a plan that would havedemanded employees be paid in cash unless they otherwise authorised inwriting. However, the government is still pressing on with complex and unnecessarynew rules about deductions from workers’ pay, and with requirements foremployers to change work arrangements so employees can meet familyresponsibilities. In Parliament [...]

Hansard: 30 October 2007 ASSEMBLY WorkChoices: benefits Mr CLARK (Box Hill) — The September edition of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s ACCI Review highlights the benefits to Australians of the federal coalition government’s workplace reforms. Since March 2006 employment has risen by 417 000 — a growth rate of 2.8 per cent per [...]

The Liberal Party will oppose two radical industrial relations Billsintroduced by the Brumby government when the Bills are debated inParliament this week. The Victorian Workers’ Wages Protection Bill requires employees to be paidin cash unless they have otherwise authorised in writing, and it imposescomplex and unnecessary new rules about deductions from workers’ pay. TheBill hits [...]

Victoria’s Minister for Industrial Relations Rob Hulls has refused to initiate an inquiry into industrial relations practices at WorkDirections Australia Pty Ltd. Shadow Industrial Relations Minister Robert Clark said Mr Hulls’ response to recent allegations about companies owned by Therese Rein, wife of Kevin Rudd, proves Labor’s stance on industrial relations reform is purely a [...]