The Ensuring Integrity Bill – Take Action!

UPDATE: The Morrison Government has withdrawn the Ensuring Integrity Bill from the Parliament. He said the legislation was withdrawn as a sign of good faith, as he tries to engage the labour movement in some upcoming meetings on IR reform. The reality is the legislation would have been defeated again and it would have been tone-deaf for the Government to pursue this legislation after frontline workers bravely put themselves in harm’s way during the COVID-19 pandemic. The withdrawal of the legislation is a victory for organised labour and collective action and shows the power we have when we act together.

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The Morrison Government is trying to push through legislation that will roll back the basic rights of working people.

The Bill is called the Registered Organisations (Ensuring Integrity) Bill but is widely known as the Ensuring Integrity Bill or the EI Bill.

This is a shocking law that would allow unions to be shut down for late paperwork.

If the same law applied to employers, only three instances of wage theft would see a company shut down.

The rights of workers to organise, and for members to democratically run their unions, is an internationally recognised human right, like a free press. Free unions are essential checks on the powerful in any democracy. Every single worker benefits from the work of unions.

The Australian union movement is already heavily regulated and the EI Bill goes further than any other western democracy in interfering with democratic workers’ organisations.

This is part of a wider web of erosion of civil liberties and democracy in Australia. And of course, the Bill does not apply to corporations or other types of elected officials like politicians.

For more info, click here.

How you can help

We need to reach out to the few cross bench Senators who will ultimately decide the Bill. We will explain how the Bill will impact us personally – as honest, hardworking Aussies – and then ask them to vote against it. Below are resources to assist you, including all the social media links. We have an EI Activity chat on facebook – email Mandy to be added to it.

Once you’ve made a comment, screenshot or share it with us so we can go and like/comment to support your comments. We’ll keep these discussions at the front of the Senators’ social media!

If you have any questions on the EI Bill or the campaign contact Mandy Girvan (mandy.girvan@fsunion.org.au) or Clive Pattison (clive.pattison@fsunion.org.au)

Very little action is required. All you need to do is write 1 tweet or 1 facebook comment a week to one of the cross bench senators.

Suggested comments:

The Ensuring Integrity laws single out unions and make it harder for workers to stand up to employers who do the wrong thing. Reject the Bill.

The Ensuring Integrity laws do not apply to banks or business. How is that fair? Do not pass this bill.

The Ensuring Integrity Bill will allow unprecedented harassment of unions and the people workers elect to lead them. Stop this Bill from becoming law.