Factories

[*crikey*mate*]

Have you ever had a job in a factory?

What were the conditions like?

Was the work boring, repetitive and tedious?

Was the protective clothing hot, heavy and cumbersome?

Was it like a big tin shed, so you baked when the sun came out?

Were there biscuits in the tea room?

If you could choose another career, would you stick with factory work?

[lis351]

I suppose I worked in a factory. Not the type you would imagine though. They built temporary buildings and we cleaned out the manufacturing marks and stuff. Yes, it was a giant tin shed, was hot as hell. The clothing wasn't bad, but I hated the protective glasses we had to wear. I don't remember biscuits in the tea room, but after looking in the fridge ONCE, I wouldn't have eaten a darn thing from there anyway.

[spotweldersfriend]

Many years ago I worked at Philip Morris in Melbourne as a machine operator.Good conditions.Back then we had a 20 minute smoko every hour,free company health cover and 4 cartons of cigarettes per month. I worked afternoon shift and got free taxi rides home after every shift.We also worked a 9 day fortnight, so yeah, conditions were good 🙂

[viewmont1071]

I worked in different big meat factories called abbatoirs for many years. I some areas the temp was 50 deg c ,in other

areas it was -50deg c....The conditions were slaughterhouse like to put it mildly

When we worked for tally and "overs" the money was huuuuuuuuge....... and a full days pay could be garnered in

about 3 hours when the chain was wound up. The uniforms consisted of blood stained communally washed and

reissued t shirts and funny little white hats

Mudginberri and enterprise bargaining...... knocked that on the head. Although I bet many do not remember or know of

the dispute it was  a landmark decision that would lead to union disintegration and enterprise bargaining in many

other industries

.. and left AMIEU union members with a personal legal bill of about $100 each.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mudginberri_dispute

The Australian Meat Industry was in serious decline by the 1980s, with 35 abattoir closures across Australia between 1979 and 1982. Cattle numbers were also being cut in an attempt to eradicate brucellosis and tuberculosis from the cattle herd. This also meant the reduction in the buffalo herd which Mudginberri primarily processed for the export trade.

In the early 1980s of the dozen abattoirs operating in the NT, only Katherine and Darwin abattoirs were bound by the industrial award, while other abattoirs were hiring workers on individual contracts without union involvement.

Most of those employed in the Mudginberri abbatoir were itinerant workers who came through each year to make good money during the dry season, whereas the larger Katherine meatworks consisted of mainly permanent residents.

Aftermath

The dispute had come at the expense of a four-month picket line and a total of $144,000 in fines against the union and a pending lawsuit for damages under Section 45D of the Trade Practices Act.

The Mudginberri dispute took 27 court cases and two years of litigation. Although the NFF and MAFTA worked together during the dispute, once a settlement was reached MAFTA informed the ACTU it would not take part in any damages claim as it was only concerned with the health of its industry and not with an ideological battle with the trade union movement.

Jay Pendarvis, the Manager of Mudginberri Station, was eventually awarded $1,759,444 damages.[14] In subsequent interviews Pendarvis claimed he was not anti-union but that he believed the union was mis-using its power by trying to impose an unworkable award on his business.

Half way through 1985 Pendarvis had second thoughts about the dispute and the NFF tactics and said: 'It became a power thing: "We're going to destroy the unions"', but was convinced to remain committed to the NFF strategy by senior officials of the NFF.

In 1986 it was revealed in Business Review Weekly that the Country Liberal Party Government of the Northern Territory facilitated loans to Pendarvis with the proviso that he sue the union for damages.[16]

The union was able to survive financially through levies placed upon membership, and while the defeat briefly united members, the union was ultimately weakened as more experienced union officials resigned from exhaustion, according to union organisers Pat Roughan and Jack O'Toole.

[viewmont1071]

united we stand divided we fall

"During August Prime Minister Bob Hawke and Industrial Relations Minister Ralph Willis attempted to have meetings between the disputing parties in Canberra but Pendarvis, the MATFA and the NFF, refused to attend saying the dispute was sub judice.

On 12 August the employers faxed their terms of settlement for the dispute to the Prime Minister which included removal of all picket lines, a 2-year ban on strikes, and pay $2.5million damages to Pendarvis as well as all accumulated legal costs.[12]

AMIEU organiser Jack O'Toole reflected in 1995: "At that stage we knew that we weren't dealing with people who were looking for a settlement so much as an overwhelming victory"