Rally supports Telstra workers
By Tim E. Stewart
BRISBANE — Following a stop-work meeting of Community and Public Sector Union members working at Telstra on September 7, a lunchtime rally attended by 100 people supported the striking Telstra workers.
T-shirts saying "You can float Telstra, but don't sink the employees" were the backdrop to a platform of trade unionists talking about the current enterprise agreement dispute in Telstra.
John Thomson from ACTU (Qld) likened the Telstra dispute to the Liberal government's attack on the Maritime Union. "The fight is on to take unions out of the workplace. This fight is about saving your job, and for the next person after you."
Ian McLean from the Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union said winning this dispute would be important in swinging the pendulum back in favour of workers.
"Reith's strategy is to put the unions out of business. It's no accident that Telstra recruited Rob Cartwright and Geoff Barkla from the mining companies in order to 'change the culture' in Telstra", McLean said. "This dispute is about pay, conditions of service, and jobs ... They're asking far too much."
Plans are underway for a combined union rally and march in Brisbane the week before the federal election.