An ACTU-commissioned review of the election had found union concern at a string of federal policy issues combined with anger at the unpopular Queensland and NSW governments undermined ACTU attempts to revive its anti-Work Choices campaign against Tony Abbott.
Unions found it difficult to mobilise members and the broader community to support the ALP at this year's election.
Issues included union concerns about the final form of the Fair Work Act; the failure to abolish the Australian Building and Construction Commission and the threats to the pay and conditions of workers as a result of Labor's award modernisation process.
The review says "teachers felt under attack by the Rudd government".
"Affiliates openly discussed the hostility of members towards the ALP, with a perception that they had not delivered on key issues and that this sense of disengagement led union members to vote for the Greens," it says.
"The perception that the ACTU was too close to Labor was a recurrent theme, as was the need to develop an independent voice on behalf of union members and their families.
"A complete list of the federal issues raised as a concern by affiliates includes: NAPLAN testing, the ABCC, the Fair Work legislation, My School website, the perceived attitude of the federal parliamentary Labor Party to union issues, Julia Gillard's perceived hostility to the teaching profession, award modernisation and OHS harmonisation."
|
|
|---|
