Posts in: economy

Maximus: Maximising Profits at the Expense of the Poor

Summer/Autumn 2003

The Federal Government wants out of the “welfare business.” John Howard thinks that “the family” is the best provider of welfare. He would love to dump the entire responsibility for raising children and caring for the sick, the elderly and people with disabilities squarely onto the unpaid shoulders of women — if only he could… Read more »

“Money Now Goes Into the Pockets of Big Business”: A Welfare Warrior Speaks Out

Summer/Autumn 2003

Pat Gowens is an activist with the Milwaukee-based welfare rights organisation, Welfare Warriors. Alison Thorne spoke to Pat about the impact of Welfare Reform and resistance mounted by Welfare Warriors. How did Clinton’s 1996 “welfare reform” impact on welfare recipients? Welfare Reform has caused the loss of millions of dollars to poor communities, resulting in… Read more »

Derailed! Victorian Transport Privatisation Fiasco

Summer/Autumn 2003

I’ve never been a “creditor” before. But on December 30, along with all other train and tram employees of National Express Group (NE), I received notice of a creditors’ meeting planned for January 2. Happy New Year! We had joined the tens of thousands of Australian workers dumped by a corporate collapse. Except for one… Read more »

Work Choices can be defeated!

Summer/Autumn 2007

Australian workers have some decisions of their own to make about the Howard Government’s WorkChoices legislation, currently transforming the industrial landscape. In New Zealand (NZ), workers were attacked with very similar industrial legislation in the 1990s, and the hard lessons kept coming, even after the election of a Labour government. Aussie workers may want to… Read more »

Federal Budget: cheap bribes can’t hide whose interests are served

Winter/Spring 2007

A few dollars to seniors and a little easing of childcare costs — these were the miserable bribes tossed around by the Howard Government in its pre-election budget. A compliant media kept everyone focused on whether they’d get some personal relief, even if just a bit. But once the dust settled, a couple of details… Read more »

Red Earth: Don’t forget the cities!

Summer/Autumn 2008

Hands up who hasn’t had a gripe about one or more of the following, lately: roads, public transport, schools, hospitals, housing, water shortages, power/gas supplies, telecommunications? A lot of raised hands, I guess! All of these are examples of the essential infrastructure that keeps our cities and towns going. Their failure is an important environmental… Read more »

Union Eyes

Summer/Autumn 2008

The ABCC must go! The Howard government has gone, but one of its most repressive anti-worker bodies — the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) — remains. Established in October 2005, this body was given sweeping powers that remove the most basic of civil rights from building workers. In gathering evidence, the ABCC operates in… Read more »