AWU angry cement plant workers forced to change industrial agreement
The Australian Workers Union (AWU) says workers at the Gladstone cement plant are being forced to abandon their industrial agreement or their company will not be allowed to bid for Federal Government contracts.
The national secretary of the union, Bill Shorten, met the company and its workers in Gladstone this week.
He says while Cement Australia is being strangled by regulation and red tape, millions of tonnes of foreign cement is being allowed into the country to the detriment of the company’s workers.
"We have an existing industrial agreement which the Howard Government is making the company change in order for the company to bid for Federal Government construction projects," he said.
"What annoys us is that there’s a million tonnes of imported cement from Korea and Thailand and Japan which doesn’t have to comply with these federal industrial relations laws, yet the hard working cement workers of central Queensland have got to give up conditions just so their company can win Government work." Published under Cement News
