News in brief

FRANCE

“Crimes, trickery” of French aged care company exposed

A French court has ruled in favour of unions and overturned worker representative elections held by the scandal-plagued company Orpea. French unions, supported by Public Services International (PSI), had argued that the elections were rigged in favour of a “yellow union” called Arc-en-Ciel that benefited from “financial and tactical support” from management. Unions have been engaged in a long-term struggle against the corrupt practices of Orpea – the second largest private care home provider in France. One of the unions’ core issues had been the company’s illegal interference in union elections in an attempt to favour Arc-EnCiel – an illegitimate ‘in-house’ union whose interests appear to align more closely with corporate management than with workers. PSI General Secretary Rosa Pavanelli congratulated the unions on their win. “The case of Orpea demonstrates once again that cuddling up to corrupt corporate managers is no way to win change for workers. “Instead, by boldly exposing Orpea’s crimes, trickery and appalling conditions for patients and frontline workers, our French affiliates have already helped spark a judicial inquiry into institutional abuse and financial crimes, overturned rigged union elections, fueled a nationwide conversation on care, won assurances from politicians on increased funding for public care systems and led the calls for deep policy change, especially as regards for-profit care operators.” ‘Our French affiliates have helped spark a judicial inquiry into institutional abuse and financial crimes, overturned rigged union elections and fueled a nationwide conversation on care.’

AUSTRALIA

Getting more men into nursing means a rethink of gender roles, pay and recognition

Attracting more men to nursing is part of the solution to the global nursing shortage, say academics. “We urgently need more men in nursing,” is the clear message from a group of academics, including Patricia Davidson, ViceChancellor of Wollongong University and Professor Jason Fairly from John Hopkins University, writing in The Conversation. The World Health Organization estimates that there is a need for a further nine million nurses worldwide by 2030. According to the International Council of Nurses, the figure is closer to 13 million. “Part of the solution is to recruit and retain more men in nursing. This would help address workforce shortages and could, over time, reduce the industry gender pay gap as the existence of men in nursing becomes more normalised,” the academics say. “As jobs dry up in traditionally male-focused industries – such as mining and manufacturing – work in health care should be attractive for men, providing job security and career opportunities. “But attracting men to the profession won’t be without its challenges. It will require a serious society-wide rethink around gender roles, compensation and recognition for the importance of nursing work.” The authors argue that robust healthcare systems should be representative of the populations they serve. “The workforce in any industry should be drawn from a range of perspectives, including gender and culture.” ‘As jobs dry up in traditionally malefocused industries, work in health care should be attractive for men.’

AUSTRALIA

Real wages fall to 2011 level

Profits are up, CEO pay is up and inflation is rocketing, but real wages are heading south.

Wage growth has risen by only 0.7 per cent to 2.6 per cent, less than half the rate of inflation at 6.1 per cent, according to data released by the ABS last month. Real wages have now effectively fallen back to 2011 levels, says the ACTU, after years of stagnant wage growth followed by deep, ongoing real pay cuts. These cuts are projected to deepen by the end of the year, with inflation expected to reach 7.75 per cent. “It is clear that we have a serious systemic problem. We have been promised wages would go up when productivity goes up – they have not. We were promised that when business does well, pay rises will come – they have not. For six months unemployment has been low, yet wages are continuing to flatline,” says ACTU Secretary Sally McManus. “Living standards are going backwards and workers now have the lowest share of GDP in recorded history. “Our bargaining system is the engine of wage growth but the engine has conked out. Our country needs urgent reform to our wages system to get wage growth back on track.” Meanwhile in the bank sector, profits are up 28 per cent, CEO pay is up 36 per cent and shareholder returns in the form of dividends and buybacks are up 57 per cent. ‘Our country needs urgent reform to our wages system to get wage growth back on

track.’ — ACTU Secretary Sally McManus

AUSTRALIA

“Free riders” should pay for union wage increases

Unions NSW argued in its submission to the Jobs and Skills Summit that non-union employees should pay bargaining fees when covered by union-negotiated pay deals.

The submission noted that while 30.7 per cent of private sector workers benefit from workplace pay deals, just 9.5 per cent of private sector workers are union members. This indicated “high levels of free riding, which is a critical contributor to wage stagnation, inequality and collective bargaining decline”, it said. More than a quarter (27 per cent) of workers who were paid according to pay deals struck after a union balloted to take industrial action, are not members. Unions NSW proposed a charge on free riders capped at 70 per cent of yearly union dues and “only payable if the benefit to the worker from the enterprise agreement is higher than this amount”. It pointed out that bargaining fees are allowed in New Zealand, the US, Canada and South Africa but are banned in Australia. Unions NSW also argued in its submission, for a requirement for employers to pay skilled workers sponsored from overseas 30 per cent above the industry median. Unions NSW secretary, Mark Morey, told The Guardian that a higher pay floor would both “stop exploitation” of migrant workers and incentivise business to “engage in skills training for local workers”. ‘High levels of free riding are “a critical contributor to wage stagnation, inequality and collective bargaining decline.’

— Unions NSW

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