An Abbott Government will reintroduce individual employment contracts at the earliest opportunity, the Australian Workers' Union National Secretary, Paul Howes, warned today.

“ Buried away in the Liberal Party economic policy statement Rebuilding Sustainable Prosperity is a clear commitment to individual statutory employment contracts,” Paul Howes said.
Workers were hit hard under WorkChoices' individual employment contracts

“ Under WorkChoices the individual employment contracts, AWAs, ripped away basic workplace rights for tens of thousands of Australians.

“ Young people who had no real chance of negotiating decent individual workplace rights were hit hard.

“ Women trying to get part-time jobs in the retail sector, to increase the family budget,  found themselves at a massive disadvantage.
Tony Abbott has a not-so-secret plan to bring back AWAs

“ Now Tony Abbott and the Liberals have a not-so-secret plan to re-introduce the hated , ugly individual employment contract AWAs,” Paul Howes warned.

“ Just go to the Liberal Party website.

" You will find in the Rebuilding Sustainable Prosperity document, under the Workplace Productivity heading,  the following sentence: The Coalition’s workplace relations policies will seek to enhance this right; allowing each worker to determine a tailor made employment opportunity with their employer with the protection that workers will be better off overall.
A sick joke

“ Those 10 last words  are a sick joke.

" During the years of WorkChoice we heard those same promises  that workers will not be worse off – but we all remember that the  hard truth was that workers were worse off, working families rights at work were hit hard.”

Mr Howes noted the news coming out of the USA this morning that the global financial crisis is not yet over – and unemployment numbers in America are now on the rise again.
In tough economic times only Labor can handle the crisis and protect our jobs, protect our rights

“ Only  Labor can handle these tough economic times in a way that protects the interests of Australian working people, in a way that protects their jobs, protects their rights at work,” Mr Howes said.

“ The Australian Labor Party not only handled the first wave of the global crisis better than all other advanced industrial countries but  they did it without doing over working people - which is what happened elsewhere!
Senator Abetz has failed to release the promised IR policy platform

“ Senator Eric Abetz had promised several times during this election campaign to release the Coalition’s IR policy – but had not lived up to that promise. Instead he seems to have gone into hiding.

“ You can bet that the hidden  IR policy will be based on the Liberal’s economic policy – which clearly says yes we will undercut workers’ rights by re-introducing individual employment contracts,” Paul Howes said.

unfair dismissal protection would also be ripped away: without the ability to just sack workers none would take up an AWA that ripped away pay and conditions—under Howard AWAs were neglected except in the mining industry. Once the Libs, without any mandate, ripped away unfair dismissal protection for all AWAs started to become more common.

More lies from the Labor-backed unions, grappling at bitter straws.


Work-CHoices, AWU's etc, are dead!

In all it's forms.

As confirmed by Tony Abbot himself on Channel 10 the night before the election, for the 216th time I'm sure...sigh~

All this is is Labor still spinning lies to try and persuade those last provisional votes.


They aren't that stupid!

I've had contracts all my life between huge employers (the smallest I have worked for had a turnover of $800m) - not a union in sight.

Just me, an employment contract and the employer.

Really - what are people so afraid of?

Take some personal responsibility for fks sake.