The fast food industry is a source of employment for thousands of young people. The life of a fast food worker usually means casual hours, low pay, workplace bullying, and unsafe work practices. Due to the decline in industries such as manufacturing more and more workers are being employed in the service sector. This growing sector is dominated by a handful of powerful multinational corporations who are determined to aggressively drive down production costs in order to boost profits.

By Anthony Main, UNITE Melboure (more…)

My name is Gordana and I am proud to say that I have finally made the decision to become a member of the Socialist Party. This year I will celebrate my 50th birthday and also I will mark 2006 as a turning point in my life. However before I go any further I will share with you my history and my ideologies. I was born in former Yugoslavia now Serbia and Montenegro. (more…)

The ACTU (Australian Council of Trade Unions), not content with holding back the working class on the industrial front is now also seeking to do so on the political front. Greg Combet in a recent article in the Australian Financial Review (AFR) has revealed that the ACTU would not be as opposed to some of the changes in Howard?s IR legislation as the ALP appears to be. This has positioned the ACTU to the right of the ALP on this issue.

Editorial from the May edition of ‘The Socialist’ (more…)

What?s the common link behind the attacks on the industrial and political rights of workers in the advanced capitalist world? What drives all governments, be they of traditionally conservative parties like the Liberals in Australia or of a ?social democratic? character as in Britain, to have identical policies on all the key questions.

By Erinn Sales and Anthony Main. Originally printed as a centre page spread in the May edition of ‘The Socialist’ (more…)

Socialist Party members ? standing as Socialist Alternative candidates and on behalf of Save Huddersfield?s NHS campaign - scored outstanding successes in the local elections. The election Dr Jackie Grunsell, standing as a Save Huddersfield?s NHS candidate, represents the local government equivalent of the election of the Wyre Valley MP in 2001 who stood against hospital closures in Kidderminster. (more…)

Ian Cook (Cookie) is a builder?s laborer and a shop steward in the CFMEU. He is currently working on a large construction site in Richmond (Melbourne). He has been working in the industry since 1987 and has seen many things happen in his time. He has been involved in several disputes but nothing compared to the great challenges that workers are facing now that the Howard government has introduced Work Choices, or as Cookie calls it ?No Choices?. (more…)

This year’s May Day demonstrations marked a historic event for the Committee for a Workers’ International. May 1 marked the launch of our first Chinese paper, ‘Workers? Democracy’ and a major step forward for our work in Hong Kong.

By Watson Yu, CWI Hong Kong (more…)

The following is an introduction for Australian readers to the political debates currently happening in Germany. It is followed by a report of last weekends WASG National Congress. Many of you will know that the new political formation in Germany, the WASG, is something that the CWI in Germany supports and is deeply involved in. In Berlin we have a significant influence in the party. (more…)

SP members in Melbourne were heavily involved today in the first serious (as in stopping production) picket line since Work Choices was introduced.

Two weeks ago an AMWU (metals division) member was sacked for ’smirking’ at his boss and his shop steward was sacked for defending him. The company is called Finlay Engineering and is located in Waterdale Rd, West Heidelberg, Melbourne. (more…)