Summary
Interview fragments from union officials on their strategies and what is needed to make the union movement more efficient, so it can survive the changing economies and legal challenges. Their aim is to grow in technology and micro economic reform, because industry is changing, and they need to increase union numbers to survive. The various workplaces, such as the offshore gas industry, for example, is not heavily unionised, and needs to be. Workers in tourism can also be susceptible to exploitation. They argue that they must look at this industry and its weak spots. It’s important to identify who the national leaders are in Labor, and find out if they are pro-union, so to win them over if they are not or to “neutralise” them.
Union officials Interviewed:
- Bernie Farrelly ACTU Organising Centre Organiser
- Troy Burton ACTU Organising Works lead Organiser
- Robert Coombs MUA Central NSW Branch Secretary
- Mick Doleman MUA Assistant National Secretary
Special Notes/Achievements
Part of a collection of short videos presented at the Maritime Union of Australia’s National Conference in 2004.
Author: J Bird, 2023