16 October, 2007As November deadline looms, Cochlear workers fighting for union representation are in the spotlight in a new TV ad.
AUSTRALIA: Cochlear workers fighting for the right to union representation in Sydney, Australia are the latest group of workers to tell their real stories on camera for a television ad showing the devastating impact the government's anti-union industrial laws have had on workers.
Produced by the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) the ad debuted before the television show Meet The Press on October 14 and began airing in metropolitan New South Wales the following day.
"The company wants us on individual contracts, but we want the union to represent us," says one of the Cochlear workers to the camera. "We've been told, if we don't like the contract, don't show up for work."
For the past decade, 260 Cochlear workers who manufacture state-of-the-art hearing devices have been represented by the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union. This year, the company, Cochlear Ltd, initiated a union-busting drive and used Australia's unfair workplace laws to force employees into a non-union agreement, conditions the workers have repeatedly rejected. These unfair working conditions will come into effect on the 6th of November.
"The laws have taken away our right to choose," adds a Cochlear worker in the 30 second ad.
The IMF and PSI have launched an international campaign in support of Cochlear workers and their right to be represented by the AMWU. To find out more information about this campaign go to: www.imfmetal.org/ListenUpCochlear