Posted by John, September 12th, 2011 - under Penal powers, Strikes, Unions, WorkChoices Lite.

Tags: AMWU, Australian Council of Trade Unions, CFMEU, Clarrie O'Shea

Last Thursday teachers and others went on strike against a 2.5 percent pay cap imposed by the New South Wales Liberal Government of Barry O’Farrell.

In Australia it is illegal to strike except during the bargaining period when industrial agreements (usually 2 to 3 years long) run out or are about to run out. Even then there are voting and other requirements which make it difficult to organise bargaining strikes.

This strike limitation destroys the capacity of workers to impose discipline on the bosses outside that small period. Bosses can cut health and safety corners, impose draconian work conditions on employees, treat staff with utter contempt, and unions have no capacity to fight back.

The teachers Union will be fined for its ‘illegal’ strike. The union says it is proud to stand up for its members against O’Farrell’s real wage cuts and proud to pay the fines. Proud to pay the fines? Oh dear.

In the West two of the strongest unions, the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and the Amalgamated Metal Workers’ Union have reached an agreement with the bosses as part of a settlement over fines for unprotected strike action.

They have agreed there will be no strikes outside the legal period for the next seven years. that agreement means they will avoid fines for the previous ‘illegal strike activity, if the Court accepts the agreement.

Seven years! The agreement means that effectively the union leadership will become a policeman for the boss, stopping workers striking and without that power accepting every attack of the bosses.

Work deaths are likely to increase as bosses put profit before people and with the unions stopping workers taking industrial action to defend safety standards.

Is there an alternative? Yes. Unions could refuse to pay the fines, and strike across Australia if any fines are imposed. They could strike if any union official is jailed for not paying the fines.

They have the power to destroy Labor’s current industrial straight-jacket and win the unfettered right to strike.

Sound far fetched? It happened in 1969 when left wing unions across Australia went on rolling strikes against the jailing of Tramways Union official Clarrie O’Shea. Five days into the general strikes a mysterious benefactor paid the fines and O’Shea was released from jail. As he told cheering workers the Union hadn’t paid a cent.

The penal powers became a dead letter.

Unions have the strike power today to turn the penal powers in Labor’s Workchoices lite into a dead letter. Why don’t they?