Changing the rules: Unions rally to overturn regressive IR laws

Trade unions across the country flexed their muscles last Wednesday, with a display of strength in support of the Australian Council of Trade Unions' Change the Rules campaign. As many as 200 000 people took to the streets of Melbourne, effectively shutting down the centre of the city. In Perth, some 3000 workers gathered outside State Parliament House. Alex Whisson was there to capture the highlights. The speakers, in order, are Meredith Hammat, the Secretary of UnionsWA, Carolyn Smith, Secretary of United Voice, Sally McManus, Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, the Secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, Steve McCartney, and finally Dave Noonan, the National Construction Secretary of the Construction, Forestry, Mining & Energy Union.