The Mining And Energy Union Podcast

Cannabis can be prescribed to you by a doctor and over 600,000 Aussies are using it to treat medical conditions. But how are employers responding to use of cannabis products in high risk workplaces, like mine sites? We discuss impairment, workplace policies and find out how the union is helping members dealing with this emerging issue.

One accident at work is one too many. But how do we make it to zero? One bloke who knows almost everything there is to know about workplace safety is Emeritus Professor Michael Quinlan. He says there are common causes, or patterns, in all workplace accidents. In fact there are 10 of them. We find out more.

There are 27 pretty happy coal miners at the Mt Pleasant open cut in the Hunter Valley, they’re the 1st workers in the country to get a pay rise thanks to the Albanese Government's new ‘Same Job, Same Pay’ laws… they’ll be getting an extra $25,000 a year. So, how do they feel? And who will they spend that money on? SPOILER ALERT: It’ll be their mums.

Train drivers at BHP’s iron ore division in The Pilbara are celebrating - they’ve just signed a great deal - but it’s been a long dusty road. And they had to threaten strike action to make the company see sense. Their colleagues over at Rio Tinto have also inked a new agreement. We find out more.

Coal miner Tom Mann was the Taylor Swift of unionists - he toured the world getting involved in union blues - like in Broken Hill where he was arrested helping miners in their fight against BHP. Phil Katz has written a new book on Tom Mann. In this episode Phil tells us about the vegetarian who carried guns, the working class man who spoke four languages, the tee-totaler who was the boogie man to bosses the world over.

Since the re-emergence of Black Lung disease in Queensland in 2015 the MEU has fought for improvements to legislation and industry practice. A recent conference in Cairns discussed what more can be done to prevent coal miners developing dust disease. Key presenters explain what the risks are, how they are managed and how workers can protect themselves.

The Callide open cut mine near Biloela is where the union will road test the Albanese Government’s new Same Job Same Pay provisions in the Closing The Loopholes Bill passed just before Christmas. Whether the contractors on site will get the same wages as directly employed miners is now up to the Fair Work Commission.

Mining can be a life-long career - sure - but how many coal miners notch up a half century? And how many rack up that 50 years at the same mine? Robert ‘Macca’ MacPherson has been presented with the MEU’s 50-Year-Service Award after a lifetime living and working in Moura - a Central Queensland mining town itself steeped in history.

MEU organisers from around the country converged on Sydney this week to plan for 2024 - they flew in from Central Queensland, the Pilbara, Broken Hill and everywhere in between to celebrate their wins and plan for 2024. We caught up with them…