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Those Social Justice issues which just don’t go away
Example One Present day Work choices which sought to restrain Wage growth and Unionism. Manipulation of Parliament and Laws made to control Workers. History 1799 Combination Act. An act of parliament to stop workers combining to ask for higher wages and better working conditions. Manipulation of Parliament and Laws made to control Workers. Example Two Present Day. The Casualisation of the workforce as World Trade changes Employment practices by employers. Manipulation of workers in changing market conditions. History 1700’s Industrial Revolution The movement of Labour from Agriculture to the Urban setting with long hours and poor pay. Manipulation of workers in changing market conditions. Example Three Present day The Unemployment rate of Newstart, now known as jobkeeper, used as a punishment of the unemployed. Harsh and unnecessary living payments. The harsh requirement to search for jobs that don’t exist. Failure to search or attend interviews resulting in stopping of payments. Not Welfare but punishment. History Late 1700’s and 1800’s The Poor House or Union, where the unemployed and the disabled were sent to work hard and live in the worst conditions imaginable in overcrowded degrading conditions just because of their Unemployment or Disability. Not Welfare but punishment. Example 4 Present day Harsh laws against Unions and their rights to enter workplaces and check for safety compliance. An Act of Parliament which established the Australian Building and Construction Commission and specific sections of the Act which are extremely prescriptive and draconian. Classic examples of the misuse of the law to attack working people. History Early 1800’s the use of Agent provocateurs by the English Government to incite groups of workers so that they could be arrested and either Hung, transported to Australia or Jailed. See The Spa Fields, The Peterloo Massacre and the Tolpuddle Martyrs. Classic examples of the misuse of the law to attack working people. Example 5 Present Day The funnelling of Public money for the Education of well off people in Private fee paying schools which is unnecessary and also takes money resources away from the public Education system. Lack of fairness. History 1700’s, 1800’s, 1900’s. Limited Educational resources for the working class. It wasn’t until 1948 that the English Welfare State was formed and Australia followed suit. To the monied classes Education is their right but not for the working class. The less the working class know the better. They can then be easily manipulated and corralled. Lack of fairness. Example 6 Present day. World trade deals provide for foreign workers to come to Australia undercutting the wages of Australian Workers and disenfranchising them as well. Power in the hands of the people with capital. History 1800’s Wages being reduced in times of poor trade by the Factory owners and farming landowners. Power in the hands of the people with capital. Example 7 Present day. The Coalition pay lipservice to Aboriginal reconciliation and inclusion in the Constitution. They refuse to recognise the Statement of the heart formulated at Uluru (Known as the Uluru Statement). Failure to recognise the reality of existence. History 1770 on The Aboriginal Nations were were described as “Fauna” by James Cook. Hence “Terra Nullius.” Failure to recognise the reality of existence. Example 8 Present Day. Failure to accept the Science of Climate change and Environmental warming. An arrogant disregard for the Environment and Science. History 1788 on A lack of understanding of disease on the indigenous Population and the wholesale clearing of land and destruction of Flora and Fauna. An arrogant disregard for the Environment and Science. Example 9 Present day The use of Political donations to wield power for the doner (Examples, Media, Extractive industries, Agriculture). Entrenchment of inequality of opportunity. History 1788 on The assignment of land to the well off and wealthy. Entrenchment of inequality of opportunity. Example 10 Present Day The increasing gap between the ability to purchase your own home because of the disparity between house prices and wages. Also the lack of social housing. Equality declines. Welfare State. History 1800’s 1900’s 2000’s Increasing possibility on a wage to save and buy your own home. Those who couldn’t afford were housed in Government social housing. Welfare State. |
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