Latest news with #AustralianWorkersUnion
Sky News AU
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
NSW Health Minister Ryan Park under siege for using ministerial car to travel 456kms from Sydney to Jindabyne
NSW Health Minister Ryan Park is under fire after it was uncovered he used a ministerial car to galivant 456kms from Sydney to Jindabyne, despite his official diary recording no meetings in the surrounding area. Ministerial car documents that were provided to The Guardian revealed that Mr Park had journeyed 456kms from Sydney to Jindabyne last August. The lengthy trip between Parliament House to the Snowy Mountains on August 29, which included a ministerial driver, was made during peak ski season. It is also believed the journey fell in the last few weeks of the interschools ski competition, which Mr Park's son participated in. The Guardian reported that Mr Park's son attended school in the surrounding region at the time. However, personal trips made by Ministers using government vehicles were permitted until February this year. NSW Premier Chris Minns announced a tightening of the rules on private use of taxpayer funded drivers after former Transport Minister Jo Haylen had her ministerial driver take her on a 446-kilometre, 13 hour round-trip from her holiday home to a lunch at a Hunter Valley winery on the Australia Day weekend. A Sydney Morning Herald investigation into NSW Ministers who used taxpayer financed drivers for family holidays showed that Mr Park took two trips to Thredbo in November and December 2024, travelling 1000 kilometres on both occasions. Mr Park at the time said the use of the vehicle allowed him to 'reunite with family while undertaking work on a handful of other occasions.' The files only documented Mr Park's trip to Jindabyne and did not record a return journey. Ministerial diaries show that Mr Park had meetings with the Australian Workers Union on the 27th of August and another with Unions NSW on the 28th of August, in addition to two unnamed meetings on the 29th of August at either his ministerial office or Parliament. However, no ministerial diary entries, social media posts or press releases explained the reason for his presence in Jindabyne on the 29th and 30th of August 2024. The travel documents also revealed the Minister made a 250km trip with a ministerial vehicle from Albury to Jindabyne on 6 September 2023. Mr Park told The Guardian in relation to the September 2023 he attended 'ministerial business in Jindabyne' and that 'these trips were in accordance with the rules at the time.' 'I've always followed the relevant guidelines,' Mr Park said. Logs show that Ms Haylen also used a taxpayer funded chauffeur to take her to or from her Caves Beach holiday house at least 14 times. NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley also used a ministerial vehicle in late April to return home from a holiday with his family in South West Rocks after the Premier announced a review into the bail of Daniel Billings who allegedly murdered Molly Ticehurst.
AU Financial Review
06-07-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
AWU calls for smelter strategy amid growing crises
The Australian Workers Union has backed calls for a strategy to manage the billions of dollars being sought to prop up fiscally troubled metal smelters as maverick independent MP Bob Katter pushes for government intervention at Glencore's Mount Isa copper operations. National secretary Paul Farrow said the AWU would welcome a smelting strategy under Labor's Future Made in Australia policy, with equity or long-term loans on the table for business being forced to weather global markets being distorted by China and others.
AU Financial Review
20-06-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
AWU says Chalmers must put big conditions on $36b Santos takeover
The Australian Workers Union is demanding Labor force Santos' Abu Dhabi suitor to supply more gas to the domestic market and sell four processing plants before it is allowed to buy the country's second-largest oil and gas company in a transaction worth more than $36 billion. The influential union is a key supporter of Treasurer Jim Chalmers, who will decide whether a consortium led by the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, known as ADNOC, can acquire the ASX-listed company.
News.com.au
10-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Rio Tinto Tomago aluminium smelter in NSW reportedly close to collapse
Rio Tinto's massive Tomago aluminium smelter in NSW is reportedly close to collapse. The facility, situated in Tomago about 13km west of Newcastle, employs some 1000 workers directly, but a stoppage would hit another 5000 indirect workers across the Hunter Valley. Mining giant Rio Tinto holds a 51.6 per cent interest in the smelter, which produces about 590,000 tonnes of aluminium each year, or about 37 per cent of Australia's total production. Multiple reports suggest the company is in emergency talks with state and federal governments for a bailout. NewsWire has contacted NSW energy minister Penny Sharpe, federal energy minister Chris Bowen and the Australian Workers' Union for confirmation of the discussions. Rio Tinto declined to comment on Tuesday. The AFR first reported on the talks on Friday, citing high energy costs for the possible shutdown. Tomago is currently powered by AGL Energy's Bayswater coal fired power station, but is pivoting to renewable energy. In January, the federal government announced a $2bn production credit for aluminium businesses to transition their smelters to green energy, which Rio heralded as a vote of confidence in domestic manufacturing. 'As traditional energy sources for heavy industry become increasingly uncompetitive, today's announcement is a critical piece in helping future-proof the industry,' Rio Tinto chief executive for Australia Kellie Parker said. 'Such support is crucial for sustaining and growing regional economies. 'As global industrial customers and consumers increasingly focus on low-carbon products, this support signals Australia's potential to be a major supplier of the aluminium needed for the global energy transition.' But negotiations over a new energy contract have troubled the smelter's operations for months. The current contract with AGL is due to expire in 2028. 2GB's Ben Fordham, speaking on Tuesday, said the situation was 'not good'. 'We've got the materials, we've got the workers, we've got the smelters, but what we don't have is a working energy system,' he said. 'If it shuts, we're not just losing a smelter, we're risking 6000 jobs.' Some 90 per cent of Tomago aluminium is exported to Asia.
ABC News
06-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Noosa Council workers locked in pay stoush in expensive holiday destination
A dispute over a new pay agreement for workers who help keep one of Australia's most popular holiday destinations moving has been stretching on for months. Multiple bouts of strike action by Noosa Council workers since February have been responded to with lockouts, or threats of lockouts, from council management. At least half a dozen union-aligned workers have been locked out of work until Monday, June 9, the unions said. That industrial action has meant some services such as pothole repairs and bin collections have not been completed. Noosa Council said it was working hard to maintain a balance between workers' rights and service delivery for residents. The Queensland Industrial Relations Commission has also become involved, with a meeting scheduled for Friday morning which led to a new offer from council which will go to union members for consultation. Prior to the meeting, Noosa Council CEO Larry Sengstock said its offer was fair and reflected increases in cost-of-living. About 200 staff members at Noosa Council are represented by either The Services Union or the Australian Workers' Union. Both unions have said they were hoping for a pay rise of at least 15 per cent over three years. They said that would bring Noosa Council salaries more on par with other local councils, including nearby Gympie, where the cost-of-living was lower. Tom Rivers, from The Services Union, said it used to be accepted that salaries were lower in Noosa because it was traditionally seen as such a good place to live that it was worth it. But with the median house price in Noosa Heads exceeding $2 million or $1.3 million in the shire, according to CoreLogic data from 2024, Mr Rivers said that was no longer fair. "It was always casually thrown around in Noosa that you're working and living in paradise, you don't need to get paid as much," he said. An outdoor worker at Noosa Council on a band 4 would be earning about $61,000 a year. At nearby Gympie, the same role would attract $68,000. "Even at the top end of the [agreement], we're still not talking about that much money for living in such an expensive town," Mr Rivers said. Michael Anderson from the Australian Workers' Union said the council's figures showed 30 per cent of their workers could not afford to live in the shire. Many lived closer to inland towns such as Gympie where housing was more affordable. Earlier this year, Noosa Council offered a pay rise of 15 per cent over three years and four months. "A lot of our members are quite disgruntled by that extra four months," Mr Rivers said. With Noosa Council looking unlikely to move, Mr Rivers said that could mean the prospect of further industrial action. Last week, the unions took their call for higher wages to the public, doorknocking and talking to residents. Mr Rivers said that had garnered a largely positive response, with the public mostly sympathetic to the unions' calls. Mr Anderson agreed. He said that extended to people understanding that rates would need to increase. "They understand that workers need and require a livable wage," he said. On the other hand, Mr Anderson said it has been "extremely difficult" to deal with the council throughout the process. "Many of our members have experienced intimidation from … managers," he said. He said in his experience, although lockouts were a "normal tactic", Noosa Council's approach had so far been at the "extreme end" of an employer's response. Mr Rivers said the council's reaction had seemed "disproportionate" at times. He said he had also heard members were concerned about staff retention rates, as many came and went within a couple of months, increasing workload for others and having an impact on morale. Mr Sengstock denied the council has been trying to "intimidate" workers throughout the protracted industrial action by imposing and threatening lockouts. "Our normal services have been suffering, and the residents are now starting to recognise that and demand their services are taken up," he said. "It's a balancing act. I'm really trying to look after our staff, but also, you know, I've got to be conscious of delivering the services that our residents are paying for." In a statement, a spokesperson for Noosa Council said it was "committed" to reaching a solution, and would respond to unions' claims in meetings with the commission.
