Tony Sheldon, one of the nation’s most powerful unionists says Coalition plans to block people convicted of certain crimes from entering secure areas of airports and the waterfront is “window dressing” that will do little to reduce crime rates.
Blocking people from receiving a security clearance would have little or no effect on crime in airports, because many workers who had not had a background check – but could be escorted into secure zones – could also be committing crimes.
While the’re being escorted? I guess that depends on who is doing the escorting. If the escort is an ex crim trying to run an honest business of getting drugs and pistols thru customs then I imagine the visitor could be aiding and abetting crimes.
In fact it is happening all the time which is exactly why we want union crims out of the picture.
The union believes the “dredging up of old offences” to stop someone from receiving an aviation or maritime security identification card would be “a double penalty” and security access should be determined by whether a person posed a current risk.
It could be a “quadrillion penalty” depending on how many times the ex crim applies for a job in a secure area.
Get used to it Tony, and, get used to the fact that the unions are not running the country anymore.
HOLDEN workers will receive cash bonuses and annual pay rises worth almost $5 million during the next two months as the carmaker seeks extra taxpayer assistance from the federal government to stave off closure.
Sometime in the near future GM willl close down Holden, they simply can’t keep on paying unions the worlds most expensive labour rates. When it happens the unions will scream and hundreds if not thousands will be out of a job.
It’s a case of less money or no money. Can’t they see that?
So the guy suing Abbott for referring to him as a thug has been charged with 60 charges leading to dozens of convictions and fines including theft, assault by kicking, criminal damage and assaulting police between 1982 and 1991.
Ie, thuggery.
Setka, the Victorian CFMEU thug in question, typifies the construction union attitudes. They, by themselves, raise the issue of unions running amok in Australia under a union led government. Abbott needs to start talking about reigning them in to mainstream civilized society along with forcing the union leadership to be subject to audit.
The same standards set for business should apply to these guys.
Isn’t it great having an ALP-Greens government with unions free to destroy jobs and businesses?
Qantas announced the shedding of
500 jobs as their profits go into free-fall partly due to the union strikes late last year.
BHP in trouble as thousands of miners walk off the job.
Coastal shipping cargo costs to rise as much as 500% as unions and the government clamp down on foreign registered ships.
About 30 per cent of coastal shipping – the carriage of cargo between Australia’s ports – is now carried on foreign ships. In 1995, there were 55 Australian-operated ships carrying coastal cargo compared with 22 today.
The 55 down to 22 is another example of unions pricing themselves out of the industry.
“The MUA’s outrageous wage demands would see maritime workers such as those employees working as kitchen hands, stewards, dishwashers and basic cooks potentially earning up to $230,000 a year”
HSU’s Craig Thomson has the quote of the year award for this jaw dropper;
[he]…said it was nonsensical to suggest there had been any political interference in the FWA investigation.
There is no benefit for me or for the government to go on as long as it has, he said. From a personal point of view, the sooner they finish it, the better.
Yeah right! Except, on the face of it, the longer it takes, the longer Thomson can stay in parliament and the longer the Gillard government can stay in power. If Thomson is found to have no case to answer I fully believe it will be because the HSU doesn’t have a rule that makes spending union funds on whores and cash advances illegal.
Kim Sattler from the Unions ACT has been
caught out lying about her involvement in winding up the Australia Day riot in Canberra. Imagine that, a union rep lying.
With over a year to go before an election things will get a whole lot worse. I pity any incoming LNP government – it will take all of the first term just to get the country back on track.
Gillard’s answers questions on the Canberra
Black’s camp and radical left wing permanent white student riot
The Prime Minister was quick to emphasize that though Tony Hodges had acted in a way that was inappropriate, he “did not misrepresent Mr Abbott’s remarks, nor did he incite violence or a demonstration.
Sorry PM, I don’t believe you. My concern is that there exists within the government, and particularly the Prime Minister’s Office, a mindset that understand that the government can’t gain any ascendancy in the polls or with the electorate based on their record, thus all steps must be taken to make Tony Abbott look bad. Tony Abbott’s remarks are continually being misrepresented – a case or two in point “Well that’s one ship that did get stopped” and “Shit happens”
The PM went on to say;
…..Mr Hodges tried to contact the Minister for Indigenous affairs Chris Burke who was unavailable and then contacted the representative for UnionsACT Kim Sattler.
Now why would he contact Kim Sattler? Because she is in the same game of trying to damage Abbott’s reputation as is Hodges. What’s the odds that they are on each others speed dial.
According to Sattler:
“Tony Abbott is like your typical bar-room brawler who starts a fight and then disappears like a coward when it is in full swing,” she wrote.
And this is, I believe, after she had set him up.
In the
Canberra Times Kim denies being the go-between
When contacted by the Sunday Canberra Times this morning, Ms Sattler said she had been at the tent embassy but she was not the go between.
“I heard it from the crowd,’’ she said.
Which is not how Barbara Shaw, Greens candidate and aboriginal activist
remembers it;
“Now I know who she is and what her position [is], it’s really disappointing,” she said.
“It breaks my heart to know who she is.”
Ms Shaw said she didn’t identify Ms Sattler on sight at the embassy rally but later confirmed her identity speaking to others who were there.
“She said I should let people know Tony Abbott is over there, so I did,” Ms Shaw said.
“I wasn’t the first person she told and the coffee shop is a public area, but there were already people from here going over there.
“I was told and I was told to tell everyone else.”
Grubs, the lot of them!
Qantas has revealed the recent
industrial dispute wiped $194 million off its bottom line in the first half of 2011-12
To be expected. Elect a Centre-left government in debt to unions and just wait for the obvious result.
It’s not over yet with Qantas and the Unions have plenty of campaigns running and in the pipe line, whereby they can really drag down the country.
From the
Australian/Wall Street Journal;
QANTAS hopes to have the first of its flights back in the air by 2pm (AEDT) today after Fair Work Australia early this morning stopped the carrier’s planned lockout of workers.
After 12 hours of deliberations, the tribunal’s full bench announced early this morning in Melbourne that it had upheld submissions by the Gillard government and Qantas to have the bargaining period terminated.
‘Bargain period terminated’ is what Qantas wanted so the sentence
Fair Work Australia early this morning stopped the carrier’s planned lockout of workers. could just as well stated
…forced the unions back to work.
News Ltd puts it better;
QANTAS planes are set to fly again after Fair Work Australia ordered an end to union strikes and the airline’s grounding of its fleet.
All in all, the decision vindicates Joyce’s strategy. Bring the dispute to a head rather than face a slow bleeding.
QANTAS has locked out international pilots, baggage handlers and engineers, essentially bringing its operations to a halt.
It has grounded all its entire domestic and international fleets indefinitely from 5pm AEDT.
The airline announced minutes ago it was locking out all members covered by the industrial agreements currently being negotiated with the Australian Licenced Engineers Union (ALAEA), the Transport Workers Union (TWU) and the Australian and International Pilots Union (AIPA).
As I figure the Qantas board runs the airline, not the unions, then that’s fine by me.
The ALP, the gift that keeps on giving. Albanese believes Qantas should have talked to him earlier. Maybe he should have spoken to his union mates earlier. Why should Qantas put up with strikes that are costing them millions of dollars daily as the union fight to get the power back they had under Hawke.
THE Gillard government has offered lucrative
tax incentives to promote Australia’s domestic shipping industry.
At the same time it is cracking down on foreign ships operating on Australia’s coast.
Actually, the tax breaks are a part of the Maritime Union of Australia’s campaign for more money. The tax breaks are designed to force business to use Aussie Shipping companies to move their goods in and out of our ports.
This will in turn, open up more positions for the union as they continue their campaign for more money and more power.
Although they have been quiet lately in January they started their campaign for
pay rises of $70,000 to $100,000 for their members, some of whom are nothing more than unskilled labourers.
Senator Abetz attacks the MUA in
this article from January this year
The MUA’s outrageous wage demands would see maritime workers such as those employees working as kitchen hands, stewards, dishwashers and basic cooks potentially earning up to $230,000 a year”.
“Let’s consider that, if a Maritime union seaman whose job is to do the dishes for 15 crew three times a day, earning up to $230,000pa, working 5 days a week, that equates to almost $20 dollars for each plate in the sink”, says Senator Abetz.
Good work if you can get it but any tax advantages or pay rise will help the MUA only. Australia will simply have to pay more for export/import costs.
But then, thats the Labor way.
A SENIOR union leader has publicly stated he believes the September 11 terrorist attacks were a conspiracy and the Twin Towers were imploded.
Kevin Bracken, Victorian branch secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia and president of the Victorian Trades Hall Council, is calling for a “proper investigation into the events of September 11”.
“I believe the official story is a conspiracy theory that doesn’t stand up to scientific scrutiny,” he told ABC radio host Jon Faine this morning.
Part of the power group running Australia – says it all really.