Moreland council sells out leisure centre workers : Melbourne Indymedia

Two months ago, the 90 casual, part-time and full-time workers employed at the leisure centre negotiated an enterprise agreement with the YWCA, the centre’s management. Australian Services Union industrial officer Igor Grattan is concerned that Belgravia will push the introduction of individual contracts (Australian Workplace Agreements). According to Grattan, only the YWCA and council-managed leisure centres across Melbourne have union agreements.

Belgravia began obtaining contracts for local government services immediately after the introduction of compulsory competitive tendering under the former Jeff Kennett state government. The company has rapidly increased its share of the leisure centre business by undercutting the wages and conditions offered by the YWCA. Belgravia pays the predominantly young and itinerant leisure centre workers it employs up to 25% less than their counterparts employed by the YWCA or at council-managed centres.

A Union Solidarity sponsored public meeting in Brunswick Town Hall on May 17 unanimously passed a motion urging the Moreland council to bring Coburg Leisure Complex under council management.

On May 22, 30 concerned residents crowded into the council chambers to hear the discussion on the future of the leisure centre. Despite having been advised beforehand that the council deliberations would be open to observers, the public gallery was closed and residents were asked to leave.

From Green Left Weekly, May 31, 2006.

COMMENT:
Kennett' Liberals introduced this "compulsory competitive tendering" and public private partnerships which the Bracks ALP Governemnt has continued despite having the majority in both Houses to overturn this.

Moreland Council is similarly majority run by ALP but they continue to undercut union won wages and conditions...
When and if they ever get Federal Government will the ALP really undo any of the Liberals follwoing US war-frenzy attacks on civil liberties, rights at work etc ?

Considering the track record of the ALP I predict they wannabe like New Labor in Britain that is economic rationalist - fundamentalist ie does what the rich want not the voters. This used to be caled Plutocracy government of the rich for the rich and in the case of the likes of Malcolm Turnbull BY THE RICH. The ALP are trawling for their own rich brats and Bracks is a MILLIONAIRE is like all (?) "labor" politicians sending their kids to private schools where they can join the networks of business which occupy the real decision making bodies in Australia....the board rooms of the largest Corporations like BHP-BIlliton
or Murdoch & Packer's media Empires MacQuarie Bank etc.

The highest paid CEO in Oz sits on the MacQuarie Bank....Alan Moss the $21 million CEO seems to have got the Howard regime to use Federal taxes pay for the dead Beraconsfield Miner miner's family and the shut down, redundancies etc. Macquarie are the owners they are liable BUT they so far avoid getting to pay up, why is Bill Shorten of the AWU/ALP Polly in the making not holding this Plutocrat to account. (Like James Hardie and the asbestos crimes the ALP/ACTU has posed itsef as winning but the victims and their families are still suffering !)

Macquarie Bank Limited is an Australian merchant bank and financial services group, providing a broad range of products and services to investors, corporations and government. Its global headquarters is in Sydney, and it is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX). It is the only large majority Australian-owned investment bank.
During 2005, it raised more than $8 billion AUD in equity capital markets, capital raisings and floats, making it the largest player in Australia in capital raisings. It is the second largest player in the mergers and acquisitions area of corporate finance.

The bank was founded in January of 1970 as Hill Samuel Australia, a subsidiary of the UK's Hill Samuel, with three staff in Sydney. The bank took its name from Lachlan Macquarie, an early Governor of New South Wales who dramatically transformed the early colonial economy. The company became a trading bank and changed to its present name in 1986, at which time it opened branches in Melbourne and Brisbane. The company listed on the ASX in 1996, with an initial market capitalization of 1.3 billion AUD.

Maquarie Bank manages a number of listed investment funds. Over the past decade, the Macquarie Infrastructure Group, has become the world's largest operator of private toll roads both nationally and internationally. Other funds managed by the bank's subsidiaries have invested in projects such as airports, operating Kingsford Smith International Airport in Sydney, for instance.

Macquarie's operations are still primarily Australian although it has built a substantial presence offshore with operations in South Africa, Brazil, Canada, the United States, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, New Zealand, Austria, Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom. It employs 1700 staff outside of Australia.

The bank's activities work within six operating groups: Banking and Property Group, Equity Markets Group, Financial Services Group, Funds Management Group, Investment Banking Group, and Treasury and Commodities Group.

Macquarie's managing director is Allan Moss, and the board chairman is David Clarke.
The bank's high margins and profits, and the consequent rewards for its executives and shareholders, have seen gossip news website Crikey dub the bank "The Millionaire Factory". Macquarie's capitalisation as at January 2006 was $15.5 billion AUD. making it one of Australia's biggest companies by value.
In 2005 Macquarie announced a hostile takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange valuing the company at £1.5 billion, a bid rejected LSE management as "derisory."

Political connections
An unusual feature of Macquarie Bank, as a financial institution, is the very strong political connections that it maintains through the appointment of former politicians and senior political staffers to senior and highly paid positions. Notable political connections include:

▪ Bob Carr, former New South Wales Premier, employed as a consultant.

▪ Max Moore-Wilton, former chief political advisor to John Howard, is Chief Executive Officer of Macquarie Airports, the owner of Sydney Airport.

▪ Alan Stockdale, former Victorian Treasurer, is an employee.

▪ Warwick Smith, former Federal Cabinet Minister, is an employee.

▪ Ross Cameron, former Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, is an employee.

▪ Irene Moss, wife of the CEO, was the Commissioner of the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption until November 2004.
Graeme Samuel, the current chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission - one of Australia's main business regulatory bodies – is also a former executive director of the company.

Macquarie Bank's logo is a representation of the Holey dollar developed by Governor Macquarie as a solution to the monetary problems of the early Australian settlers. For the company, it is supposed to represent financial knowledge and ingenuity.

that is from Wikipedia

While Moreland Council was meeting 'in camera' to discuss the contract for tendering the Coburg Leisure Centre, some of the local residents put the time waiting outside to good use preparing leaflets for the Rally June 28: Victoria Says No to Unfair Work Law.

Although residents wern't able to hear the discussion, they were able to see who voted for the resolution and who voted against. Thankyou Greens councillors. It looks like working people have been sold out again by the Labour Party.

The resolution that was read to the audience after the vote was the labor councillors trying to covering their arses over maintaining working conditions. No mention of fears of residents regarding provision of disability access and services to patrons of the leisure centre.

If Belgravia has tendered 25% less than the other tenderers, where will they make these savings, given labour costs is the largest component, and providing good access to disabled people also tends to be labour intensive.

Local residents and Leisure centre workers, along with unionsolidarity.org members awaiting the deliberation of Moreland Council