Port Campbell community stand up to IR bully : Melbourne Indymedia

Port Campbell community stand up to IR bully

All work came to a halt at the Port Campbell Woodside Gas Plant construction site on Friday 20 October 2006, as over 300 members of Union Solidarity and the general local community rallied in a community assembly that stopped all traffic from entering or leaving the site.

This action was taken by the community in support of site workers who have been victimized by Colin Milne, an IR consultant and renowned union head kicker, who was hired by the company because the site was behind schedule. Milne's reputation is a cause for concern, as he was the IR consultant on another petro chemical construction site that carried out unsafe work practices, one incident resulting in a number of workers suffering from gas poisoning.

In its two year history, the Woodside site has not been subject to any industrial action as the previous management negotiated agreements that were acknowledged to be fair as well as supporting safety for all workers on the site. The company hired John Kint to help speed up the construction process, and Kint brought Milne on board to help him. Workers at the site protested to management when they heard that Milne had been hired, but they were ignored.

Needless to say, Milne makes big dollars for consulting. And, since Milne started at the site, he has forced redundancies on around 150 workers (60 of whom are ETU members). He has also threatened to get rid of another 10 electricians every week unless they agree to work a 6 day week. Presumably, the longer working week is to make up for the labor lost because of the 150 redundancies.

Milne also got rid of a CFMEU shop steward after he had a confrontation with the man. The man's employer, a subcontracted company, did not want to let the worker go as he was a valued employee. Milne, however, made it clear that he would hire another sub contracting firm to replace them if they did not stand the worker down. Milne then removed the worker's entry pass so that he could not access the site. The CFMEU offered counseling, an independent mediator of Milne's choice, and a hearing in the Industrial Relations Commission in order to get the man reinstated. Milne refused.

Milne's actions appear to be less concerned with the company's desire to meet targets, than they are concerned with his desire to ensure that his workers and the subcontracting companies are non-union.

On the day, some workers had already entered the site before the community assembly took place. These workers were threatened with fines of up to $28,000 if they left the site in sympathy. When the community realized this was the case, public outcry forced management to reconsider their stance and the workers left the premise to a standing ovation.

The effort was a success. The community sent a loud message to the company that men like Colin Milne are not welcome and will not be tolerated on construction sites in the Australian community, proving that Australians will fight to ensure that our country is the lucky country for all workers.