Labor Deputy Leader Julia Gillard has made it clear that if the ALP wins office on November 24, she will expect senators from other political parties to respect its mandate to introduce the IR policies it revealed in Forward with Fairness.
The ANF and Victorian public hospitals are likely to continue talks late into tonight, after the AIRC on the weekend terminated bargaining periods and issued s496 orders to halt nurses' industrial action.
Prime Minister promises no further IR reform; Labor vows to lift child care tax rebate from 30% to 50%; and Labor candidate steps down over workplace incident.
LHMU Queensland branch secretary Ron Monaghan is the favourite to take over as Queensland Council of Unions secretary after former secretary Grace Grace won the by-election on the weekend for the seat vacated by former State Premier Peter Beattie.
Nurses' union says State Government strategy aimed squarely at nurse-patient ratios; Hockey says union role "essentially" over; Gillard confirms Labor won't change Work Choices bar on protected action in pursuit of multi-employer deals; Farmers launch their own IR advertising campaign; and SDA appeals decision that left deal standing despite workers being misled.
Unions have decided to hand out how-to-vote cards on election day for the first time, recommending a vote for Labor in the Lower House, and for a party committed to abolishing Work Choices in the Upper House.
Victorian public sector nurses, who are undertaking a campaign of unprotected industrial action, could be the first workers to have an arbitrated "workplace determination" under Work Choices, after hospitals and the Brumby Government revealed in the AIRC this evening that they were seeking to terminate bargaining periods to open the door for that process.
A Rudd Labor Government would provide grants of between $5,000 and $15,000 to help small businesses to develop and implement family-friendly policies, Shadow IR Minister Julia Gillard announced today.
AIRC to hear bid to counter Victorian nurses strike this afternoon; Senior judge criticises Telstra and Deacons; and Just Jeans employee wins job back after summary dismissal.
