Australian Workers Union to enforce cost-cutting at Arrium steel
Published on Mon, 09 May 2016
World Socialist Web Site last week reported that appointed with the backing of the Australian Workers Union, KordaMentha, the administrator for steel-maker and iron ore miner Arrium, is preparing a restructure that will involve mass sackings and attacks on working conditions, both domestically and overseas.
While assisting KordaMentha to match the global assault on workers’ wages and conditions, the AWU is attempting to divert workers’ anger in a reactionary nationalist direction. Accompanied by denunciations of China, the AWU and the Labor Party are calling for tariffs on imported steel and the introduction of laws compelling federal, state and local governments to use Australian steel.
AWU national secretary Mr Scott McDine declared in a media statement said “If we are going to build Australian infrastructure with Australian steel we need to set hard targets for procurement. Strengthening anti-dumping measures is also vital to ensuring that below-cost steel from China and elsewhere does not punch a hole in Australian employment.”
Arrium, one of the two remaining steel manufacturers in Australia, was placed in voluntary administration on April 7, owing more than $A2.8 billion to banks and other creditors, $1 billion to suppliers and $500 million to its employees. Arrium, a discarded spin-off from mining giant BHP Billiton, employs 7,000 workers across Australia, including almost 2,000 in the South Australian regional city of Whyalla, along with 1,300 workers in 14 other countries, who all face a major assault on their jobs and working conditions. There are 94 Arrium entities now in administration. On April 12, KordaMentha replaced Grant Thornton, which was initially appointed as administrators by Arrium’s board. The move was initiated by the AWU, acting in concert with Arrium’s banking syndicate creditors, featuring Australia’s big four banks—ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and NAB. In fact, the AWU obtained a Federal Court order that it would exclusively represent the Arrium workers as creditors.
Source : World Socialist Web Site