Worker – Spring 2024
Worker-SPRING-2024
Life Membership Martin Hilton
Marty joined the AWU in 1979 when he started work as a Blast Furnace operator at the Steelworks in Whyalla and still holds that position today. Marty always understood the value of being in the Union and became an AWU delegate in 1983 and is still an AWU delegate today (over 40 years as a […]
Life Membership – James Phelan
James (Jim) Phelan has been a loyal and committed AWU Member for 40 years with his workplace being in the most remote and harshest areas of Australia that being the Cooper Basin in South Australia (Santos). Jim over this time has been instrumental in conjunction with our members in achieving outcomes (especially as a […]
SA Delegate of the Year 2024
Congratulations to Terry Bails, our 2024 AWU South Australian Delegate of the Year! Terry Bails has been a member and delegate at Visy Glass since 1998. Over the years, he has participated in every enterprise agreement negotiations, making sure that the members at his workplace get better wages and outcomes each time. He […]
Paul Farrow announced as new AWU National Secretary
The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) has announced that Paul Farrow will become the union’s 22nd National Secretary, succeeding Daniel Walton who will officially step down on 14 July. Mr Farrow, a seasoned trade unionist with more than two decades of experience, was endorsed to succeed Mr Walton by the AWU’s National Executive, meeting in Darwin. […]
A Message From Outgoing AWU National Secretary Daniel Walton
After nearly 7 years at the helm, and 15 years in our Union, Daniel Walton has announced he is stepping down as AWU National Secretary. “It has been a singular honour to lead the AWU and I’m incredibly proud of what our union has achieved by working together since 2016,” he says. “I have the […]
Vale Bill Ludwig
Vale William Patrick Ludwig OAM 25/05/1934 – 11/04/2022 William Patrick Ludwig OAM was fond of saying we are all just passing through this great union. But no one passed through the AWU quite like Big Bill. Bill was born in Longreach, in the central west of his beloved state of Queensland in 1934. The death […]
Horticulture Award Win
The Australian Worker’s Union has won a landmark industrial case that will soon guarantee all piece-rate farmworkers will be paid the minimum hourly rate. It’s a decision that will see the vast majority of farmworkers significantly increase their take-home pay and superannuation. WHAT IT MEANS FOR ME? As a farmworker you can still be paid […]
Fuel Security Announcement
The coronavirus outbreak has exposed Australia’s weak fuel security policy and shown how vital it is to protect and strengthen our fuel refining capabilities. When the next crisis hits, Australia currently only has 50 days of fuel available. We’d run out of petrol within weeks and the shelves in supermarkets would be empty within days. It’s not good enough, and […]
Gas Announcement
As all manufacturing workers know, the cost and reliability of energy are vital to the survival of our sector. While gas prices crashed worldwide, Australians continued to pay a premium to use our own natural resources. This price gouging has sent manufacturers to the wall and allowed foreign multi-national gas companies to extract billions from us while we all suffer. It’s not […]
Vale’ Jim Doyle
Members, it is with a degree of sadness that I inform you that Life Member Jim Doyle passed away on Saturday August 15th at the age of 102. Jim joined the AWU at the age of 15 initially working the shearing sheds in North Queensland. In his 87 years of continuous membership of the AWU […]
O.I Glass Sale
Please find link below for a Letter from State and Branch Secretary Peter Lamps to members regarding the Sale of O.I Glass. O-I Glass Sale
Is Your Workplace Safe From Silica Dust
Each year 600,000 Australian workers are exposed to silica dust. When inhaled silica dust can cause a variety of lung diseases including silicosis, the new asbestosis. Silica dust can also cause kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Currently the mandatory silica dust exposure limit is 0.1mg per cubic metre, averaged over an eight-hour day. […]
Grant Cunningham Wins First AWU Yossi Berger Award
The inaugural Yossi Berger Safety Award has been presented to Grant Cunningham, an AWU delegate and the Rolling Mill Team at Liberty Primary Steel in Whyalla, South Australia. The award was presented by National Secretary Daniel Walton, and South Australian Branch Secretary Peter Lamps at the Steel Works. “At the AWU, nothing is more important […]
STATEMENT FROM NATIONAL SECRETARY DANIEL WALTON, & STATE SECRETARY PETER LAMPS
Wednesday 08th January 2020 Across Australia there are hundreds of AWU members currently fighting bushfires as part of their work duties for State and Territory governments. The AWU thanks these members for their hard work, professionalism, dedication and their massive contribution to saving lives and homes during these unprecedented fires. Your union stands ready to […]
AFP Media Raids — A Disturbing Threat to Press Freedom
Lately, we have seen a series of raids by the AFP on media outlets. This is both a disturbing Government attack on press freedom and highlights the need for strong protections for whistle-blowers in the public and private sectors, in this case in The Afghan Files. Journalism relies on being able to protect sources that are […]
Concerns for seriously injured Cooktown Quarry Worker
“Our number one concern is for the welfare of the young man injured working at a Cooktown quarry yesterday – and the welfare of his family and friends,”
Safety Matters
Making sure AWU Members have safe and healthy workplaces is a top priority for our union.