Speeches & Opinions 2012



Read speeches and opinion articles by ACTU officers and staff.



Our collection contains speeches delivered at conferences, forums, summits, rallies and events by Executive and senior ACTU staff.  It also contains op eds – previously published in mainstream media – by the ACTU President, ACTU Secretary or ACTU Assistant Secretaries.


Recent Speeches & Opinions

Willox must live on a different planet

December 5, 2012

Insecure work may deliver short-term profits for business but in the long-term it is leading to the creation of a workforce that will be less equipped to compete in the 21st century, writes ACTU President Ged Kearney.

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Tim Lyons address to The Challenge of Workplace Productivity Symposium, 29 November 2012

November 29, 2012

Tim Lyons address to The Challenge of Workplace Productivity Symposium, 29 November 2012

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Go Home On Time Day: Address to the National Press Club, 21 November 2012

November 21, 2012

While I encourage everyone to go home on time today, and reflect about what is important in life outside of work, tomorrow, I want our politicians, business leaders and policy makers to go to work early, and start thinking about how we can tackle this great challenge for Australia’s workforce: the rise and impact of insecure work.

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Unpaid hours should not be the Aussie way

November 21, 2012

Australia is suffering an epidemic of overwork, and part of the cause is the growth of insecure work over the past two decades.

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Ged Kearney address to the Future of Work conference 2012

October 3, 2012

For employers to get the best out of their workers they must be prepared to invest in them; to provide their workers with secure jobs with decent wages and conditions, and access to training.

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Ged Kearney address to United Mineworkers Federation Memorial Day 2012

September 9, 2012

I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today and pay my respects to elders past and present.

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Michael Borowick address to ACTU-Cancer Council Asbestos Summit 2012

September 4, 2012

When we declared that: Our aim is to eliminate asbestos-related disease and exposures to all forms of asbestos in Australia. Well that was our aim then and it remains our aim today.

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Ged Kearney address to Fair Work Australia

August 10, 2012

It is important that current and future generations of Australians understand where these values came from, and that they are aware of the battles that won them the rights they enjoy today.

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Ged Kearney address to Melbourne Press Club

July 26, 2012

The work we do is often ignored, or if it is covered, presented as something that would have happened without unions.

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Dave Oliver address to ACTU Investment Forum 2012

June 29, 2012

Dave Oliver address to ACTU Investment Forum 2012

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