Daniel Andrews seeks “VICTORIA – THE UNION STATE”

Statement from the Minister for Industrial Relations Robert Clark

Late in the election campaign, it is becoming increasingly clear that, if he becomes Premier, Daniel Andrews plans to give his union funders and supporters unprecedented power over key public bodies and key sectors of the Victorian economy.

Daniel Andrews announced on Monday that, if elected, he will sack the entire board of Ambulance Victoria, no doubt to be replaced with union-friendly Labor nominees. As The Age newspaper has editorialised,

“Mr Andrews’ proposal smacks of a petulant and union-driven political stunt”

Today, newspapers carry an open letter from the board of Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria, the association for CFA volunteers, warning:

“Don’t be fooled, the plan announced by Labor is not about improving community safety in Victoria, the detail included in their announcement is about giving the control of CFA to a union.”

And, of course, Daniel Andrews has previously committed to tearing up the Construction Industry Code and scrapping the Compliance Unit, thus giving open season to the thuggery and intimidation of the CFMEU on building sites across Victoria.

Having the CFMEU calling the shots on every building site in Victoria will send construction costs through the roof, and return the building industry to being a no-go zone for the rule of law.

As former judge and Royal Commissioner Terence Cole has said in the Australian Financial Review,

“Only a political party in thrall to the building unions would contemplate abolishing a state’s building code.”

As well, Labor plan to force every labour hire business in Victoria to obtain a licence from the State Government before being able to carry on business. The plan, released in May this year, states:

“Labor will require labour-hire companies to be licensed before they can engage workers and deploy them to host employers.”

and that:

“The licensing system will be scoped and designed by a future Labor Government in consultation with industry groups, unions and existing labour-hire companies.”

Labour hire companies, like all other employers, are already required to comply with Julia Gillard’s Fair Work laws and with all other applicable Commonwealth and State regulatory requirements.

Forcing labour hire companies to also obtain a Victorian Government licence is simply a backdoor way of ensuring that no-one is allowed to operate a labour hire business in Victoria unless they have obtained a union tick of approval.

Unions can play an important and valuable role in representing the interests of their members, but the Trade Unions Royal Commission has demonstrated how too many union bosses put their own personal and political interests ahead of the interests of their members.

Handing power to union bosses over vital government entities such as Ambulance Victoria and the CFA threatens the ability of those organisations to serve and protect the Victorian community. It also threatens massive cost increases for Victorian taxpayers as these entities are forced to comply with union leaders’ demands.

The one initiative that Daniel Andrews has not yet announced is a plan to change Victoria’s number plate slogan to read “VICTORIA – THE UNION STATE”.