News

The new Fair Work Act came into force this month in Australia, scrapping the former conservative government's anti-union, anti-worker legislation.



The new laws will re-establish fundamental labour rights and protections for workers and their unions in Australia. Provisions being re-installed or strengthened by the legislation include protection from unfair dismissal; a basic safety net covering pay, hours of work and rest breaks; collective bargaining rights; and union membership and representation.



At the same time, unions with members at Telstra, Australia's incumbent telco, signed an agreement with the company in July to promote a better working relationship into the future.



With the departure of the former union-hostile CEO, the CEPU, CPSU and APESMA are looking forward to working with a more cooperative Telstra management and are currently negotiating a new collective agreement.



You can see a copy of the agreement here:



http://www.cepu.org/news09/040.htm