Stick Together

We hear from workers and union representatives from the Melbourne Change the Rules rally on April 10.

Another major industrial fire hit the working class Northern suburbs of Melbourne on April 6. It is the fourth in three years. 175 fire fighters were used to subdue the fire and 8 schools were shut down with some concern about what chemicals were actually in the smoke. Two workers were hospitalized. Residents are asking would this happen with so little consequence except to their health if it was in the South Eastern suburbs of the City.

National Union of Workers organiser talks about Chemist Warehouse. Jeff Hoy from Victorian branch of the Marinetime Union of Australia talks about a maintenance contract on the Melbourne wharves causing a few waves. We join Transport Worker Union members preparing to go on a convoy ride for safety and conditions in the wake of a spike in truck driver deaths since the beginning of the year.

Interview with Brett Edgington, Secretary of the Ballarat Trades and Labour Council. Brett took me on a tour of Ballarat Trades Hall and told me about the history of the labour movement in Ballarat.Sallly Warren from United Voice spoke about her experiences working in aged care and why she chose to speak at the Royal Commission into Aged Care.

This week we take you to the picket lines, where Chemist Warehouse workers are taking indefinte action in support of fair wages, secure employment and an end to sexual harassment in the workplace. Their strike action is now in its second week. We talk with members and union officials about their fight with Australia's largest pharmacy retailer.We also take you to the school students strike in Melbourne where more than 15 thousand students left school to demand immediate action to combat climate change. We report from the middle of the march and speak with unionists, students and parents.As always, your weekly wrap of union news, including coverage of the upcoming case to increase the minimum wage.

A look at what the Geelong Women's Committee at the Geelong Trades Hall are doing to combat Gendered Violence.The NTEU expose the problems with the Ramsay Western Civilization Centre set to open at Queensland University.

Australian supermarkets have pushed the price of milk down to the point where it is now cheaper than bottled water. This has caused pressure through the supply chain. While we hear a lot about the farmers, we don't often hear about the workers in the milk and other dairy processing plants. What does this price pressure mean for the workers and theregional communities that rely on the industry? This week we speak to a dairy worker of 35 years and the lead organiser for the NUW's dairy division.We also speak with the ASU's Lisa Darmanin about the push by western Melbourne councils to privatise in-home aged care and what it means for both workers and their clients.

The Financial Sector Union gives us the reasons for why the look into Banks is unfinished business.  We follow that with the attack on wharfies by Australia’s biggest stevedore company DP World.

We hear from Sally McManus about the launching of her new book "On Fairness".We speak with Hayden from the Australian Unemployed Workers Union (AUWU) about the impact of the Cashless Welfare Card in Ceduna.

This week on the show we bring you an update on the story of Hakeem Al-Araibi. The Bahrain born footballer was granted refugee status in Australia but now faces extradition to Bahrain after being detained in Thailand. His return to Bahrain will lead to imprisonment and there are fears for his safety. Rallies were held in Sydney and Melbourne last week calling for his immediate release and return to Australia. Later in the show, we speak with Paul Healey from HACSU about the upcoming Royal Commission into Victoria's mental health services.