In what country can you be interrogated, about a union meeting, and jailed for not giving evidence? yes, that?s right.

Australia.


The Howard Government has passed a law that threatens building workers with prison. The Howard Government has created a special anti-union taskforce to enforce this law.
These Government ?workplace enforcers? can also investigate related industries like manufacturing, transport and logistics.

The Howard Government has chosen to attack an industry that workers have made safe, productive and efficient.
The Howard Government claims it is being fair to workers.

Is this the Australia we want?

Why is the Howard Government targeting union members in the building industry?
John Howard does not like the fact that building union members have strong industry-wide agreements that deliver good wages and conditions.
He does not like the fact that building workers place safety above profits.
He does not want other workers to jeopardise profits by following this example.
John Howard has chosen to make an example of building industry workers.

What has Howard done?
Howard wants to lower the wages and conditions of all workers. But he knows that he will not succeed in the highly skilled and unionised building industry without ?enforcers? in the workplace.
Through the Australian Building and Construction Commissioner, the Howard Government has given its ?workplace enforcers? the power to:

  • Inspect worksites and interview workers
  • Force unions to produce documents
  • Force workers and union officials to interviews ? failure to answer questions from Howard?s ?workplace police? in an interrogation could lead to six months imprisonment.
  • Prosecute unions and individual workers for a breach of the law even when a dispute is settled and the employer opposes any prosecution
  • Impose penalties of up to $110,000 for unions and $22,000 for individuals for unlawful industrial action.
  • Howard?s ?workplace enforcers? can also pursue unions and individuals for unspecified damages which could run into millions of dollars.

Can you believe this is happening in Australia?

The Australian building industry is productive and delivers quality
The Australian building industry is extremely productive and highly efficient.
In Australia, we build quality buildings under strong regulations. That?s why buildings in Australia don?t fall down.

Without unions, the building industry will cut corners
Even though the building industry remains one of the most dangerous in which to work, union vigilance has saved hundreds of lives by stopping employers cutting corners on workers? safety.
The Howard Government wants to destroy the Union. Without unions, the building industry will:

  • lose its skilled workers
  • allow unscrupulous developers to cut corners to protect profits
  • lose the basic regulations that unions monitor to ensure workers? safety, and
  • leave the young and unskilled to fend for themselves.


This is not the Australia we want
Why is an Australian industry that is world-class being attacked like this?
Why does the Government believe that Australian workers need ?workplace enforcers? in their workplaces?
Why is the Government ignoring the unions? role in protecting workers against the unscrupulous and the dangerous?
Why doesn?t the Government demand that productivity improvements come from an increasingly skilled workforce?
Why does the Government believe that it is ?fair and simpler? to prey on the vulnerable in the workforce to enhance profits?
Why does the Government expose future generations to a workplace environment that belongs more in the 19th century than the 21st?
The Howard Government?s Australia is not the Australia we want to leave to our kids.

Howard?s new ?workplace enforcers? are targeting building workers today.
You and your family could be next!
Imagine a country where ?workplace enforcers? can:

  • detain you
  • interrogate you about your work
  • question you about your workmates
  • force you to give information
  • threaten you with imprisonment if you speak about any of this to others.


Sounds like a Third-World dictatorship
Think again. This is John Howard?s Australia. His new ?workplace enforcers? have these powers courtesy of legislation recently bulldozed through our Parliament. The building industry is the first industry to be targeted ? your industry could be next.

Howard is blinded by his hatred of unions
Howard has forgotten that unions:

  • ensure workers receive a fair reward for their labour
  • protect vulnerable workers against the unscrupulous and the dangerous
  • insist on workers being able to improve their skills.

This Government resents the building unions? success in standing up for their members.

What you can do:

  • Talk to your families, your mates and your local community about the impact of these laws
  • Get more copies of this flyer and share them around, or reproduce it in your union, club or community newsletter
  • Lobby your local Federal MP to resist these unfair laws
  • Support your Union?s campaign for a fair go for all workers.


This is not the Australia we want.