23 March 2006 Newcastle Council defends working families’ right to weekends Newcastle City Council has acted to defend the right of working families to long weekends only days before the Howard Government’s radical new workplace laws will take effect. Workers, residents and unions have congratulated Newcastle City Council for being the first in the Hunter to halt building work across the city on the six long weekends that occur each year. The Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union said Tuesday’s decision was a vital move in defending the rights of workers and the community and will provide both quality family time for workers, and six long weekends a year where local residents will be free from the noise, dust and traffic of building work. CFMEU Newcastle Organiser Peter Harris said it was a great initiative. “Newcastle City Council have acted decisively and become the first local government area in the Hunter to pass this groundbreaking resolution that will counteract some of the negative impacts working families will suffer from the introduction of John Howard’s radical new work laws,” he said. “This will directly improve the lives of local residents are will set a precedent that long weekends are an important time of rest and relaxation for all working families, and workers should not be facing the prospects of being forced to work, without penalty rates, on long weekends. “We congratulate council for protecting six long weekends a year where residents can now sleep in and enjoy family time without enduring the noise, dust and traffic from nearby building sites.” Newcastle City Councillor Sonia Hornery said she was glad to be part of this groundbreaking motion to defend the rights of local workers, and the amenity of local residents. “This motion provides local workers with the chance to spend time with their families and be more involved in the community, which can be very hard in the construction industry which usually operates six days a week throughout the year,” she said. “Most importantly Newcastle residents will now enjoy long weekends without the disturbance sometimes caused by building work, allowing them to spend quality time with their families. “These new protections for long weekends will be invaluable for local workers as the Howard Government’s workplace laws begin implementing individual contracts that take away fixed hours of work and will result in thousands of Australian workers losing access to long weekends.” Media contact: Peter Harris (CFMEU Newcastle Organiser) 0417 061 967 Sonia Hornery (Newcastle Councillor) 0411 874 667   [ more news ]