Other Things You Can Do

Download a petition that calls on the Howard Government to formalise treaty arrangements between Australia and the Netherlands and Australia and the United States of America which will permit the recovery of all assets of the James Hardie company previously located in Australia, now located in the Netherlands.

The Victorian Trades Hall Council has produced some excellent materials about the James Hardie campaign to be downloaded and pinned up or distributed in workplaces. There is:

• A poster advertising a rally at the Australian Stock Exchange, 530 Collins Street, 11 am Wednesday 15 September, with a march from Trades Hall starting at 10.30.
• A leaflet outlining the issues involved in the campaign
• And a sticker

If you want print versions of these resources contact VTHC Media Officer Andrea Maksimovic - amaksimovic@vthc.org.au.

Background Information

Australia’s Greatest Corporate Scandal - the legal chicanery employed by James Hardie to avoid its responsibilities to asbestos sufferers is one of the most repugnant acts in Australia’s corporate history. This backgrounder outlines the evolution of the scandal.

In The Shadow Of The Veil: James Hardie And Asbestos Compensation– an informative research note from the Parliamentary Library.

Transcript of Media Conference held by Bob Carr, Greg Combet, Bernie Banton and other asbestos victims on the Jackson Report on James Hardie asbestos (21 September 2004).

Transcript of Media Conference held by Bob Carr, Attorney-General Bob Debus, Greg Combet, John Robertson, Bernie Banton and other asbestos victims on special James Hardie legislation (28 September 2004).

Transcript of Media Conference held by Mark Latham when he added to the pressure on James Hardie to meet their obligations to asbestos victims including a promise to change Corporations Law if elected to office. (24 September).

Asbestos Victims Support Groups

Asbestos Victims Support Groups - there are a number of victim support groups for advice or support about asbestos related diseases.

ACTU Media Releases

ACTU Calls On James Hardie To Conclude Compensation Deal - ACTU Secretary Greg Combet today called on James Hardie to finalise the multi-billion dollar compensation deal for victims of the companys asbestos products within coming days or face a renewed union, government and community campaign. (20 November 2005)

Coalition Parties Must Return James Hardie Donations To Asbestos Victims -the ACTU today calls on the Liberal Party and the National Party to immediately return the $78,000 in donations they received from James Hardie and donate them to asbestos victims. (22 September 2004)

Jackson Inquiry Says James Hardie Must Pay - ACTU Secretary Greg Combet today welcomed the release of the report by Mr Jackson QC in the NSW Special Commission of Inquiry into the under-funding by James Hardie of its asbestos liabilities. (21 September 2004)

James Hardie A Lemon In Orange County - unions in the United States are set to lend their support to the campaign by Australian unions and asbestos sufferers groups to make James Hardie guarantee full compensation to Australian victims of its asbestos products. (15 September 2004)

ACTU Pushes James Hardie To Withdraw Asbestos Letter - under threat of legal action by the ACTU, James Hardie Industries has agreed to stop distributing a misleading and deceptive letter it sent to customers downplaying the company’s role in the manufacture of asbestos products and its liability for compensation claims by victims. (24 August 2004)

ACTU Calls For Talks As James Hardie ‘Restructuring’ Unravels - ACTU Secretary Greg Combet today called for negotiations between unions, asbestos support groups, the Medical Research and Compensation Foundation and James Hardie to find a solution to the mess created by James Hardie when it restructured its operations. (Media Release - 13 August 2004)

Unions Reject James Hardie Plan To Cap Compo For Australian Asbestos Victims - ACTU Secretary Greg Combet has condemned a proposal put by James Hardie to the NSW Special Commission of Inquiry this afternoon as nothing more than an attempt by the company to cap its asbestos liabilities and limit pay-outs to Australian asbestos disease sufferers and their families. (Media Release - 12 August 2004)

Don't Cap Compensation To Hardies Asbestos Victims - the Foundation established by James Hardie Industries to compensate Australian asbestos victims has agreed to support unions and asbestos victims groups in opposing proposals by James Hardie that would reduce victims' rights to proper compensation. (Media Release - 12 August 2004)

James Hardie Profits Can Fully Compensate Asbestos Victims - today's profit announcement by James Hardie shows the company is making more than enough money to fully compensate the victims of the company's deadly asbestos products. (Media Release 10 August 2004)

Asbestos Victims Denied Justice By $2 Billion Compensation Shortfall - a $2 billion shortfall in the fund set up by James Hardie to compensate victims of its deadly asbestos products means thousands of Australians could be denied justice, unions said today. (Media Release 28 July 2004)

Asbestos Victims Denied Compensation: ACTU Calls for Treaty with Netherlands - the ACTU calls for the Federal Government to take steps towards a treaty with the Netherlands where the James Hardie company is now based so that asbestos victims can pursue their rights to full compensation. (Media Release 19 July 2004)

ACTU Rejects Plan to Limit Compensation for Asbestos Victims - the ACTU has rejected a new proposal by the Board of James Hardie for a statutory scheme that would limit the rights of victims of its deadly asbestos products. (Media Release 15 July 2004)

Opinion

Morality Will Prevail Over Profit - investment analysts are living in dream world if they recommend investors to buy James Hardie shares based on the belief that the company has no legal obligation to pay up to asbestos victims says ACTU Secretary Greg Combet. (27 September 2004).

Deathly Silence - the James Hardie outrage says it all: it’s about time the Federal Government and the business sector stood up for some corporate responsibility argues ACTU Secretary Greg Combet.

Asbestos – The Patient Killer - it is unacceptable for James Hardie to now try to offload responsibility for fully compensating its asbestos victims says ACTU President Sharan Burrow. (31 August 2004).