Saturday, April 29, 2006
The Defence Force has sacked a nursing manager after she questioned a delay in the arrival of an ambulance called to a suspected cardiac arrest.
Anne Woodward was removed from her job as a senior civilian nurse at the Defence Force's Kapooka health centre near Wagga Wagga in NSW after querying a delay in treating an army recruit who had collapsed.
Ms Woodward asked her boss why an ambulance called to transfer the man urgently to Wagga Wagga Base Hospital was forced to sign in at the front gates and was then escorted at slow speeds.
After six years as nurse manager at Kapooka, she was removed from her position on March 29 following an order from the centre's commanding officer.
Ms Woodward was given no explanation at the time. She says she was given an hour to clean out her desk and was told military police would be called if she did not leave by that time.
NSW Nurses Association acting secretary Judith Kiedja said Ms Woodward had worked at Kapooka since 2000 without incident before her sacking and had the strong backing of staff.
Nurses at Kapooka signed a statement in which they "categorically state that Anne Woodward is the most proficient and respected leader that we have had the pleasure to work with."
Both Kapooka commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Paul Langworthy and the Defence media unit declined to comment.
(Source: The Australian)
Anne Woodward was removed from her job as a senior civilian nurse at the Defence Force's Kapooka health centre near Wagga Wagga in NSW after querying a delay in treating an army recruit who had collapsed.
Ms Woodward asked her boss why an ambulance called to transfer the man urgently to Wagga Wagga Base Hospital was forced to sign in at the front gates and was then escorted at slow speeds.
After six years as nurse manager at Kapooka, she was removed from her position on March 29 following an order from the centre's commanding officer.
Ms Woodward was given no explanation at the time. She says she was given an hour to clean out her desk and was told military police would be called if she did not leave by that time.
NSW Nurses Association acting secretary Judith Kiedja said Ms Woodward had worked at Kapooka since 2000 without incident before her sacking and had the strong backing of staff.
Nurses at Kapooka signed a statement in which they "categorically state that Anne Woodward is the most proficient and respected leader that we have had the pleasure to work with."
Both Kapooka commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Paul Langworthy and the Defence media unit declined to comment.
(Source: The Australian)
A computer repairer's 'negotiation' with his boss under the new Industrial Relations laws consisted of his boss changing him from permanent to casual without any increase in pay, then telling him to "fit in or fuck off".
Julian McAlpine thought he was doing well in his first full-time job as a computer repairer when he passed his three-month probation period in December.
But about two weeks after March 27, when the Federal Government's new workplace laws kicked in, his boss at ICP Electronics Australia, an industrial computing products trader, switched him to a nine-day fortnight on reduced pay.
When Mr McAlpine, 21, looked at his payslip he had been downgraded from permanent full-time to casual employment, but with no loading to compensate for his loss of paid sick leave, annual leave and public holidays.
At a meeting on Friday last week, Mr McAlpine said, his boss, Andrew Tuft, told his staff of 10 at the company's Mount Ku-ring-gai office to "fit in or fuck off".
"It wasn't good," said Mr McAlpine, who is worried that another job will be hard to find.
Last week he was due for only three days' pay because his new conditions meant Monday was his day off, while Tuesday was unpaid as a public holiday.
"He can just sack me on the spot now because I am a casual," he said.
Mr McAlpine believes Mr Tuft downgraded his conditions because of the new laws, which have removed unfair dismissal provisions for workplaces with fewer than 100 employees. They also allow employers to rehire staff on terms that do not meet awards.
Mr Tuft, who owns the company, denied there was any connection to the new laws, and said that "there are certain master-servant relationships to do with employee relationships."
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
Julian McAlpine thought he was doing well in his first full-time job as a computer repairer when he passed his three-month probation period in December.
But about two weeks after March 27, when the Federal Government's new workplace laws kicked in, his boss at ICP Electronics Australia, an industrial computing products trader, switched him to a nine-day fortnight on reduced pay.
When Mr McAlpine, 21, looked at his payslip he had been downgraded from permanent full-time to casual employment, but with no loading to compensate for his loss of paid sick leave, annual leave and public holidays.
At a meeting on Friday last week, Mr McAlpine said, his boss, Andrew Tuft, told his staff of 10 at the company's Mount Ku-ring-gai office to "fit in or fuck off".
"It wasn't good," said Mr McAlpine, who is worried that another job will be hard to find.
Last week he was due for only three days' pay because his new conditions meant Monday was his day off, while Tuesday was unpaid as a public holiday.
"He can just sack me on the spot now because I am a casual," he said.
Mr McAlpine believes Mr Tuft downgraded his conditions because of the new laws, which have removed unfair dismissal provisions for workplaces with fewer than 100 employees. They also allow employers to rehire staff on terms that do not meet awards.
Mr Tuft, who owns the company, denied there was any connection to the new laws, and said that "there are certain master-servant relationships to do with employee relationships."
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Telecommunications company AT&T provided American government eavesdroppers with full access to its customers' phone calls, and shunted its customers' internet traffic to data-mining equipment installed in a secret room in its San Francisco switching center, according to a former AT&T worker cooperating in the Electronic Frontier Foundation's lawsuit against the company.
Mark Klein, a retired AT&T communications technician, submitted an affidavit in support of the EFF's lawsuit this week. That class action lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco last January, alleges that AT&T violated American federal and state laws by surreptitiously allowing the government to monitor phone and internet communications of AT&T customers without warrants.
According to a statement released by Klein's attorney, a National Security Agency agent showed up at the San Francisco switching center in 2002 to interview a management-level technician for a special job. In January 2003, Klein observed a new room being built adjacent to the room housing AT&T's switching equipment, which is responsible for routing long distance and international calls.
"I learned that the person whom the NSA interviewed for the secret job was the person working to install equipment in this room," Klein wrote. "The regular technician work force was not allowed in the room."
Klein's job eventually included connecting internet circuits to a splitting cabinet that led to the secret room. During the course of that work, he learned from a co-worker that similar cabinets were being installed in other cities, including Seattle, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego.
"While doing my job, I learned that fiber optic cables from the secret room were tapping into the Worldnet (AT&T's internet service) circuits by splitting off a portion of the light signal," Klein wrote.
The split circuits included traffic from peering links connecting to other internet backbone providers, meaning that AT&T was also diverting traffic routed from its network to or from other domestic and international providers, according to Klein's statement.
The secret room also included data-mining equipment called a Narus STA 6400, "known to be used particularly by government intelligence agencies because of its ability to sift through large amounts of data looking for preprogrammed targets," according to Klein's statement.
Narus, whose website touts AT&T as a client, sells software to help internet service providers and telecoms monitor and manage their networks, look for intrusions, and wiretap phone calls as mandated by federal law.
Klein said he came forward because he does not believe that the Bush administration is being truthful about the extent of its extrajudicial monitoring of Americans' communications.
"Despite what we are hearing, and considering the public track record of this administration, I simply do not believe their claims that the NSA's spying program is really limited to foreign communications or is otherwise consistent with the NSA's charter or with FISA," Klein's wrote. "And unlike the controversy over targeted wiretaps of individuals' phone calls, this potential spying appears to be applied wholesale to all sorts of internet communications of countless citizens."
(Source: Wired News)
Mark Klein, a retired AT&T communications technician, submitted an affidavit in support of the EFF's lawsuit this week. That class action lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco last January, alleges that AT&T violated American federal and state laws by surreptitiously allowing the government to monitor phone and internet communications of AT&T customers without warrants.
According to a statement released by Klein's attorney, a National Security Agency agent showed up at the San Francisco switching center in 2002 to interview a management-level technician for a special job. In January 2003, Klein observed a new room being built adjacent to the room housing AT&T's switching equipment, which is responsible for routing long distance and international calls.
"I learned that the person whom the NSA interviewed for the secret job was the person working to install equipment in this room," Klein wrote. "The regular technician work force was not allowed in the room."
Klein's job eventually included connecting internet circuits to a splitting cabinet that led to the secret room. During the course of that work, he learned from a co-worker that similar cabinets were being installed in other cities, including Seattle, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego.
"While doing my job, I learned that fiber optic cables from the secret room were tapping into the Worldnet (AT&T's internet service) circuits by splitting off a portion of the light signal," Klein wrote.
The split circuits included traffic from peering links connecting to other internet backbone providers, meaning that AT&T was also diverting traffic routed from its network to or from other domestic and international providers, according to Klein's statement.
The secret room also included data-mining equipment called a Narus STA 6400, "known to be used particularly by government intelligence agencies because of its ability to sift through large amounts of data looking for preprogrammed targets," according to Klein's statement.
Narus, whose website touts AT&T as a client, sells software to help internet service providers and telecoms monitor and manage their networks, look for intrusions, and wiretap phone calls as mandated by federal law.
Klein said he came forward because he does not believe that the Bush administration is being truthful about the extent of its extrajudicial monitoring of Americans' communications.
"Despite what we are hearing, and considering the public track record of this administration, I simply do not believe their claims that the NSA's spying program is really limited to foreign communications or is otherwise consistent with the NSA's charter or with FISA," Klein's wrote. "And unlike the controversy over targeted wiretaps of individuals' phone calls, this potential spying appears to be applied wholesale to all sorts of internet communications of countless citizens."
(Source: Wired News)
Quote of the Moment:
"I have expressed my concern over these concentrations [of Turkish and Iranian troops near the border with Iraq]...Iraq is a sovereign independent nation that won't let other nations interfere in its internal affairs"
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. President Talabani was speaking at a press conference, with the U.S. ambassador.
"I have expressed my concern over these concentrations [of Turkish and Iranian troops near the border with Iraq]...Iraq is a sovereign independent nation that won't let other nations interfere in its internal affairs"
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. President Talabani was speaking at a press conference, with the U.S. ambassador.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Many young Australians put up with poor pay, unreasonable sackings, bullying and illegally low rates of pay, according to a series of surveys.
Data from the Australian Centre for Industrial Relations Research and Training said that, of 12-25 year olds in New South Wales, one in seven working as casuals were 'asked' to work unpaid overtime. 12 per cent had worked an unpaid work trial, and 23 per cent had been bullied at work.
A survey of 11,000 children aged 12-16 years by the NSW Commission for Children and Young People found that 29 per cent earnt $4 or less per hour, and 22 per cent earnt $6-8 per hour. 48 per cent had been verbally harassed, and 23 per cent experienced physical harassment.
A similar survey by SA Unions of South Australians aged 15-35, found that 22 per cent of respondents said they had been fired for unfair reasons. 17 per cent had been fired or lost shifts after a birthday. One in four were bullied at work. One in four people aged 15-19 sometimes felt pressured to work overtime without pay, as did two in five 20-24 year olds. One in four in both age groups felt pressured to work while sick.
A survey of fast food industry workers aged under 25 by Jobwatch Victoria found that ten per cent were not being paid the legal minimum. More than 43 per cent did not know whether they were paid the legal minimum. More than a quarter were not paid or only sometimes paid for overtime. More than 35 per cent had experienced workplace violence or bullying. Of these, 68 per cent did not report it in the workplace.
Most of the data dates from before the new industrial relations laws, which are generally held to give more power to employers and less to employees.
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
Data from the Australian Centre for Industrial Relations Research and Training said that, of 12-25 year olds in New South Wales, one in seven working as casuals were 'asked' to work unpaid overtime. 12 per cent had worked an unpaid work trial, and 23 per cent had been bullied at work.
A survey of 11,000 children aged 12-16 years by the NSW Commission for Children and Young People found that 29 per cent earnt $4 or less per hour, and 22 per cent earnt $6-8 per hour. 48 per cent had been verbally harassed, and 23 per cent experienced physical harassment.
A similar survey by SA Unions of South Australians aged 15-35, found that 22 per cent of respondents said they had been fired for unfair reasons. 17 per cent had been fired or lost shifts after a birthday. One in four were bullied at work. One in four people aged 15-19 sometimes felt pressured to work overtime without pay, as did two in five 20-24 year olds. One in four in both age groups felt pressured to work while sick.
A survey of fast food industry workers aged under 25 by Jobwatch Victoria found that ten per cent were not being paid the legal minimum. More than 43 per cent did not know whether they were paid the legal minimum. More than a quarter were not paid or only sometimes paid for overtime. More than 35 per cent had experienced workplace violence or bullying. Of these, 68 per cent did not report it in the workplace.
Most of the data dates from before the new industrial relations laws, which are generally held to give more power to employers and less to employees.
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
The Australian Tax Office is hiding corruption and political interference in deals with major companies that left the nation billions of dollars out of pocket, a former tax department auditor has claimed.
In a submission to a parliamentary inquiry into the tax system, Chris Seage said confidence had been undermined by the way the ATO gave preferential treatment to major firms with political links over small-time taxpayers.
Mr Seage, who worked for 23 years with the ATO, said the tax office itself was contributing to the lack of confidence in the tax system by the way it treated big business.
He said settlements with companies such as Gerard Industries and the Lowy family highlighted how the ATO was prepared to forego hundreds of millions of dollars in fines and tax just to reach a settlement.
The federal government, both Labor and coalition, were also afraid to reveal details of how the ATO dealt with 'the big end of town'.
"It seems that big company settlements are something the government does not want Australians to find out about," he said.
"They are happy for the secret details to disappear into some black hole or abyss to never reappear.
"So what is the ATO hiding? I suspect a number of things including corruption, political interference and sloppy administration."
Mr Seage said ordinary taxpayers were right to be angry at the way the ATO, and government, seemed to favour big companies.
He said one of the biggest problems was the secrecy provisions of the Tax Act that both the government and the ATO hid behind to deny the general public information about major tax settlements.
"At the moment the ATO is an unaccountable rabble with respect to the big company settlements and parliament has allowed this to happen..." he said.
(Source: The Age)
In a submission to a parliamentary inquiry into the tax system, Chris Seage said confidence had been undermined by the way the ATO gave preferential treatment to major firms with political links over small-time taxpayers.
Mr Seage, who worked for 23 years with the ATO, said the tax office itself was contributing to the lack of confidence in the tax system by the way it treated big business.
He said settlements with companies such as Gerard Industries and the Lowy family highlighted how the ATO was prepared to forego hundreds of millions of dollars in fines and tax just to reach a settlement.
The federal government, both Labor and coalition, were also afraid to reveal details of how the ATO dealt with 'the big end of town'.
"It seems that big company settlements are something the government does not want Australians to find out about," he said.
"They are happy for the secret details to disappear into some black hole or abyss to never reappear.
"So what is the ATO hiding? I suspect a number of things including corruption, political interference and sloppy administration."
Mr Seage said ordinary taxpayers were right to be angry at the way the ATO, and government, seemed to favour big companies.
He said one of the biggest problems was the secrecy provisions of the Tax Act that both the government and the ATO hid behind to deny the general public information about major tax settlements.
"At the moment the ATO is an unaccountable rabble with respect to the big company settlements and parliament has allowed this to happen..." he said.
(Source: The Age)
Pregnant women are going without medical treatment, because visa restrictions prevent them from receiving Medicare or earning an income, according to a new report.
A report by Anne McNevin, of the Australian National University, found that a single mother from the Horn of Africa, who had been a victim of female 'circumcision' in her home country, was refused an appointment with a gynaecologist because she did not have a Medicare card.
Between 2001 and 2003, the Hotham Mission Asylum Seeker Project in Melbourne came into contact with 15 pregnant asylum seekers who had no medical entitlements. Two of of the women had not been treated by a doctor in the first seven months of pregnancy.
Under a controversial rule introduced in 1997, asylum seekers on certain visas are provided with no medical or income support and are forbidden from working, forcing them to rely entirely on charities for their survival. Some have been on these visas for years.
Australian Medical Association president Mukesh Haikerwal said the rules, which are being reviewed by the Immigration Department, were "perverse and unfair" and set asylum seekers up to fail.
"We think the situation is untenable, with people legally entitled to live in the community but unable to earn a wage to look after themselves and their family," Dr Haikerwal said.
"In particular, they can't look after their health, which of course is often quite precarious because of their physical and mental state."
Last November, the Victorian Government became the first in Australia to order public hospitals to stop charging asylum seekers for medical services after it was revealed some hospitals used debt collectors to recoup fees.
An Immigration Department spokesman said that as of February, a third of the 6700 asylum seekers holding bridging visas did not have work rights.
(Source: The Age)
A report by Anne McNevin, of the Australian National University, found that a single mother from the Horn of Africa, who had been a victim of female 'circumcision' in her home country, was refused an appointment with a gynaecologist because she did not have a Medicare card.
Between 2001 and 2003, the Hotham Mission Asylum Seeker Project in Melbourne came into contact with 15 pregnant asylum seekers who had no medical entitlements. Two of of the women had not been treated by a doctor in the first seven months of pregnancy.
Under a controversial rule introduced in 1997, asylum seekers on certain visas are provided with no medical or income support and are forbidden from working, forcing them to rely entirely on charities for their survival. Some have been on these visas for years.
Australian Medical Association president Mukesh Haikerwal said the rules, which are being reviewed by the Immigration Department, were "perverse and unfair" and set asylum seekers up to fail.
"We think the situation is untenable, with people legally entitled to live in the community but unable to earn a wage to look after themselves and their family," Dr Haikerwal said.
"In particular, they can't look after their health, which of course is often quite precarious because of their physical and mental state."
Last November, the Victorian Government became the first in Australia to order public hospitals to stop charging asylum seekers for medical services after it was revealed some hospitals used debt collectors to recoup fees.
An Immigration Department spokesman said that as of February, a third of the 6700 asylum seekers holding bridging visas did not have work rights.
(Source: The Age)
Monday, April 17, 2006
Children are at risk of being returned to immigration detention centres under the Federal Government's new 'tough' policy on asylum seekers, according to the Opposition and refugee advocates.
Federal Liberal backbencher Petro Georgiou helped force the Howard Government to soften its immigration detention policy last year, including removing children from centres and placing them in community detention.
But last week the Government announced it was extending its 2001 'Pacific Solution'. This is generally held to be in response to complaints by the Indonesian government over the decision last month to grant temporary protection visas to 42 West Papuans.
Under the changes, any asylum seeker entering mainland Australia or surrounding islands by boat will be sent to offshore detention centres for processing — Christmas Island, Nauru or Manus Island.
The facilities on Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island are not officially classified as detention centres, paving the way for child refugees to again be held in prison-like facilities.
(Source: The Age)
Federal Liberal backbencher Petro Georgiou helped force the Howard Government to soften its immigration detention policy last year, including removing children from centres and placing them in community detention.
But last week the Government announced it was extending its 2001 'Pacific Solution'. This is generally held to be in response to complaints by the Indonesian government over the decision last month to grant temporary protection visas to 42 West Papuans.
Under the changes, any asylum seeker entering mainland Australia or surrounding islands by boat will be sent to offshore detention centres for processing — Christmas Island, Nauru or Manus Island.
The facilities on Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island are not officially classified as detention centres, paving the way for child refugees to again be held in prison-like facilities.
(Source: The Age)
A Victoria Police whistleblower is suing Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon for damages, claiming his professional reputation and health were severely damaged after his name was publicly disclosed.
The man claims he was forced to move home and to go on stress leave after his identity was revealed and he began receiving anonymous threats.
He accuses the police commissioner of failing in her duty to protect his identity as a whistleblower, by calling a meeting at which information was revealed that was likely to lead to his identification.
The Glen Waverley man, who is still employed by Victoria Police, is named in the writ but cannot be identified because of the Whistleblowers Protection Act.
He blew the whistle in 2002 on aspects of the force's controversial multimillion-dollar information technology contract with IBM.
The Ombudsman's Office conducted an inquiry into allegations of financial mismanagement and an $85 million blow-out in Victoria Police information technology contracts.
The whistleblower first raised concerns that his identity may have been leaked with the Ombudsman in January 2003 after he says he was ostracised in the Victoria Police.
The Ombudsman offered to arrange his transfer to another job, but the whistleblower declined because he was concerned it would harm the investigation.
He alleges that the force's information management department assistant director, David Gung, discussed his identity with others after it became obvious at a meeting in December 2002.
Mr Gung was one of four Victoria Police executives against whom the whistleblower had made protected disclosures to the Ombudsman.
By January 2003, the whistleblower claims he was enduring whistles, muttered comments and deliberately maintained stares at work.
He says he began to receive two to three anonymous and threatening calls a week and was eventually forced to move home to protect his family. One caller allegedly warned: "We'll get you when there are no witnesses around."
He says he was ostracised at work by senior colleagues who sought to engineer confrontations with him and who falsely accused him of accessing Victoria Police's LEAP database.
He says that his problems were compounded when a senior IBM manager effectively identified him at a meeting with police personnel on April 1, 2003.
Despite repeated complaints by him, he claims both Victorian Police and the Ombudsman's Office failed to effectively investigate the disclosure of his name.
(Source: The Age)
The man claims he was forced to move home and to go on stress leave after his identity was revealed and he began receiving anonymous threats.
He accuses the police commissioner of failing in her duty to protect his identity as a whistleblower, by calling a meeting at which information was revealed that was likely to lead to his identification.
The Glen Waverley man, who is still employed by Victoria Police, is named in the writ but cannot be identified because of the Whistleblowers Protection Act.
He blew the whistle in 2002 on aspects of the force's controversial multimillion-dollar information technology contract with IBM.
The Ombudsman's Office conducted an inquiry into allegations of financial mismanagement and an $85 million blow-out in Victoria Police information technology contracts.
The whistleblower first raised concerns that his identity may have been leaked with the Ombudsman in January 2003 after he says he was ostracised in the Victoria Police.
The Ombudsman offered to arrange his transfer to another job, but the whistleblower declined because he was concerned it would harm the investigation.
He alleges that the force's information management department assistant director, David Gung, discussed his identity with others after it became obvious at a meeting in December 2002.
Mr Gung was one of four Victoria Police executives against whom the whistleblower had made protected disclosures to the Ombudsman.
By January 2003, the whistleblower claims he was enduring whistles, muttered comments and deliberately maintained stares at work.
He says he began to receive two to three anonymous and threatening calls a week and was eventually forced to move home to protect his family. One caller allegedly warned: "We'll get you when there are no witnesses around."
He says he was ostracised at work by senior colleagues who sought to engineer confrontations with him and who falsely accused him of accessing Victoria Police's LEAP database.
He says that his problems were compounded when a senior IBM manager effectively identified him at a meeting with police personnel on April 1, 2003.
Despite repeated complaints by him, he claims both Victorian Police and the Ombudsman's Office failed to effectively investigate the disclosure of his name.
(Source: The Age)
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
The French government has retreated from a major part of its proposed changes to industrial relations laws, after a nationwide wave of strikes and civil disobedience against them.
Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announced that the proposed new law, which would give employers the right to fire workers younger than 26 at any time during the first two years of their employment without giving a reason, would be withdrawn.
(Source: AZCentral [USA])
Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announced that the proposed new law, which would give employers the right to fire workers younger than 26 at any time during the first two years of their employment without giving a reason, would be withdrawn.
(Source: AZCentral [USA])
Monday, April 10, 2006
The Iraqi security minister has accused American troops of being involved in the massacre of 37 unarmed people in an attack on a mosque.
"At evening prayers, American soldiers accompanied by Iraqi troops raided the Mustafa mosque and killed 37 people" according to Abd al-Karim al-Enzi, Minister of State for National Security.
"They were all unarmed. Nobody fired a single shot at them [the troops]. They went in, tied up the people and shot them all. They did not leave any wounded behind" he said.
Baghdad Governor Hussein Tahan said the local government had cut off relations with Western forces over the incident.
(Source: Irish Examiner)
"At evening prayers, American soldiers accompanied by Iraqi troops raided the Mustafa mosque and killed 37 people" according to Abd al-Karim al-Enzi, Minister of State for National Security.
"They were all unarmed. Nobody fired a single shot at them [the troops]. They went in, tied up the people and shot them all. They did not leave any wounded behind" he said.
Baghdad Governor Hussein Tahan said the local government had cut off relations with Western forces over the incident.
(Source: Irish Examiner)
Sunday, April 09, 2006
The United States government is stepping up plans for a possible air strike on Iran, and is even considering the use of nuclear weapons, according to a report by influential investigative journalist Seymour Hersh.
Hersh's story in the New Yorker magazine quotes former and current intelligence and defence officials as saying the administration increasingly sees "regime change" in Iran as the ultimate goal.
"This White House believes that the only way to solve the problem is to change the power structure in Iran, and that means war," Hersh quotes an unidentified senior Pentagon adviser on the 'war on terror' as saying.
The report says the administration has stepped up clandestine activities in Iran and has initiated a series of talks on its plans with "a few key senators and members of Congress".
A former senior defence official is quoted as saying the military believes a sustained bombing campaign against Iran will humiliate the leadership and lead the Iranian public to overthrow it, adding that he was shocked to hear the strategy.
The report also says the US military is seriously considering the use of a tactical nuclear weapon against Iran to ensure the destruction of its main centrifuge plant at Natanz.
The Pentagon advisor is quoted as saying some senior officers and officials are considering quitting over the issue.
The United States says it is focused on forging a diplomatic solution to the Iran impasse but refuses to rule out an attack, to deal with what it says is one of the biggest threats to Middle East stability.
Hersh won a Pulitzer prize in 1970 for uncovering the My Lai massacre by US troops in Vietnam, and his reporting helped expose abuses by American troops at Abu Ghraib prison.
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
Hersh's story in the New Yorker magazine quotes former and current intelligence and defence officials as saying the administration increasingly sees "regime change" in Iran as the ultimate goal.
"This White House believes that the only way to solve the problem is to change the power structure in Iran, and that means war," Hersh quotes an unidentified senior Pentagon adviser on the 'war on terror' as saying.
The report says the administration has stepped up clandestine activities in Iran and has initiated a series of talks on its plans with "a few key senators and members of Congress".
A former senior defence official is quoted as saying the military believes a sustained bombing campaign against Iran will humiliate the leadership and lead the Iranian public to overthrow it, adding that he was shocked to hear the strategy.
The report also says the US military is seriously considering the use of a tactical nuclear weapon against Iran to ensure the destruction of its main centrifuge plant at Natanz.
The Pentagon advisor is quoted as saying some senior officers and officials are considering quitting over the issue.
The United States says it is focused on forging a diplomatic solution to the Iran impasse but refuses to rule out an attack, to deal with what it says is one of the biggest threats to Middle East stability.
Hersh won a Pulitzer prize in 1970 for uncovering the My Lai massacre by US troops in Vietnam, and his reporting helped expose abuses by American troops at Abu Ghraib prison.
(Source: Sydney Morning Herald)
Privatisation of Melbourne's public transport has cost taxpayers $1.2 billion more than if the system had remained in public hands, according to a analysis by transport experts.
And if Connex and Yarra Trams are given franchise extensions, taxpayers will pay $2.1 billion more by 2010 than if the system were publicly owned.
The experts urge the State Government to take over the system and set up an independent public agency.
"It would be a tragedy if the Government simply extended the franchises and passed up the opportunity to put public interest back into public transport," they say.
Even former premier Jeff Kennett, a strong advocate of free-market economics who privatised the system in 1999, said the Government should examine all options, including public ownership.
Senior lecturer in transport planning at Melbourne University, Dr Paul Mees, RMIT University's Associate Professor Michael Buxton, John Stone from Swinburne University, and Dr Patrick Moriarty from Monash University, prepared the analysis. It will be released tomorrow.
"The experiment has failed spectacularly...subsidies have increased, services have not improved, inappropriate rolling stock has been purchased...the regulator has been 'captured' by those he is supposed to be regulating, there is no real planning for the future," they say.
The critics say current subsidies and fare revenue, totalling $1.2 billion a year, were "more than sufficient" to upgrade the system to world's best standards, despite what Connex and Yarra Trams claim.
They say any extra spending in the Government's transport and liveability statement, due next month, could be wasted.
"The main problem is that Melbourne is receiving poor value for the very substantial sums currently expended on the privatised system. The correct response is not to give the private operators even more money, but to fix the inefficiencies."
(Source: The Age)
And if Connex and Yarra Trams are given franchise extensions, taxpayers will pay $2.1 billion more by 2010 than if the system were publicly owned.
The experts urge the State Government to take over the system and set up an independent public agency.
"It would be a tragedy if the Government simply extended the franchises and passed up the opportunity to put public interest back into public transport," they say.
Even former premier Jeff Kennett, a strong advocate of free-market economics who privatised the system in 1999, said the Government should examine all options, including public ownership.
Senior lecturer in transport planning at Melbourne University, Dr Paul Mees, RMIT University's Associate Professor Michael Buxton, John Stone from Swinburne University, and Dr Patrick Moriarty from Monash University, prepared the analysis. It will be released tomorrow.
"The experiment has failed spectacularly...subsidies have increased, services have not improved, inappropriate rolling stock has been purchased...the regulator has been 'captured' by those he is supposed to be regulating, there is no real planning for the future," they say.
The critics say current subsidies and fare revenue, totalling $1.2 billion a year, were "more than sufficient" to upgrade the system to world's best standards, despite what Connex and Yarra Trams claim.
They say any extra spending in the Government's transport and liveability statement, due next month, could be wasted.
"The main problem is that Melbourne is receiving poor value for the very substantial sums currently expended on the privatised system. The correct response is not to give the private operators even more money, but to fix the inefficiencies."
(Source: The Age)
Employers can now ban union officials from their workplaces by claiming that they have a religious objection to unions.
Prior to WorkChoices, employees had to agree if an employer wished to ban union officials.
(Source: Workers Online)
Prior to WorkChoices, employees had to agree if an employer wished to ban union officials.
(Source: Workers Online)
Monday, April 03, 2006
A chain of private childcare centres which is accused of several breaches of care, has taken legal action to prevent authorities investigating it.
The Brisbane-based ABC (unconnected to the broadcaster) is the world's largest listed child-care company, and has a fifth of the more than 4000 child-care centres in Australia. They are taking legal action in the Supreme Court to stop Victorian authorities asking for details and documents relating to alleged breaches in care standards.
The chain has been involved in several incidents. In one case, Bendigo 2-year-old Todd Kenworthy was found to have a broken arm. Staff claimed that "he must have fallen over but no one saw him do it", according to his mother Emma. For months Mrs Kenworthy continued to ask at reception whether the management had determined what had happened to Todd. "The lady at the front desk kept saying they were 'still looking at it'", until eventually Mrs Kenworthy stopped asking.
Another ABC centre, in East Melbourne, is under investigation after a complaint was made by the parents of Brock Ravest, nearly 4, that he had been lost in a lift.
Mother Kristen Ravest, speaking for the first time about the incident, said that in December 2004 Brock mentioned to his father that he had been stuck in the centre's shared lift. More worrying for his parents, he said he was found not by his paid carers but "by a man in a suit".
His father, Daniel, went to ask the centre staff, who had not mentioned the incident, for an explanation.
"They were trying to cover it up. First they said he had gone to another room and he was lying," Mrs Ravest said.
Single mother Victoria Harper, who was on waiting lists at eight centres, says she had no choice but ABC. With an estimated 175,000 children on waiting lists, many parents say they grab the first place available.
Ms Harper signed up daughter Estelle, then about eight months old, at ABC East Melbourne in December 2002. Soon after, she began noting that nappy changing practices were unhygienic, dirty bins were accessible to children and advertised menus did not reflect what was served.
Ms Harper said Estelle also fell ill with pneumonia before her first birthday and had to go to hospital, which she suspected was linked to being in the East Melbourne centre.
"At the time, other children in her room also contracted upper respiratory infections," she said. Ms Harper also had concerns about staff ratios for babies and what appear to her to be high numbers of junior or agency staff.
"Basically, it was inadequate child care," she said. "They didn't have the infrastructure."
A senior ABC child-care worker said she believed that food at the centre where she worked in a Melbourne suburb was not what most parents would assume their fees covered.
"We never struggled for food, but you'd expect it to be a lot higher (standard) than it actually was," the worker said. "When you break it down, our budget works out to under $1.50 a child each day - that covers breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and a late snack - they never blatantly say 'Keep costs down', but it is a strict budget - and that's the end of it."
Another worker, who witnessed the transition when an outer Melbourne centre belonging to the Peppercorn chain was taken over by ABC, said: "It was hard: the grass was always synthetic. If toys were broken, you had to get two quotes and put it in with the director at the centre. Then the director would contact head office and they would approve or disapprove it. Even if a microwave or anything like that was broken, it would take time."
ABC was recently fined for inadequate supervision of a runaway toddler at a centre at Hoppers Crossing three years ago. However the fine of $200 is unlikely to have a serious impact. In February the company said it had more than doubled first-half earnings to $38 million and was on track to a forecast full-year profit of $88 million.
An Australia Institute survey of child-care workers found that community centres rated the highest quality, with small commercial centres scoring nearly as highly. Corporate chains were held in lower regard on indicators such as staff turnover and ratios, as well as facilities and food.
However two-thirds of Australian child-care centres are now run for profit, with most for-profit centres run by ABC or its two main rivals Hutchison's Child Care Services and Child's Family Kindergartens.
The commercial child-care sector has been aided by Federal Government child-care subsidies to parents, and the end of direct grants to non-profit community centres in the late 1990s.
(Source: The Age)
The Brisbane-based ABC (unconnected to the broadcaster) is the world's largest listed child-care company, and has a fifth of the more than 4000 child-care centres in Australia. They are taking legal action in the Supreme Court to stop Victorian authorities asking for details and documents relating to alleged breaches in care standards.
The chain has been involved in several incidents. In one case, Bendigo 2-year-old Todd Kenworthy was found to have a broken arm. Staff claimed that "he must have fallen over but no one saw him do it", according to his mother Emma. For months Mrs Kenworthy continued to ask at reception whether the management had determined what had happened to Todd. "The lady at the front desk kept saying they were 'still looking at it'", until eventually Mrs Kenworthy stopped asking.
Another ABC centre, in East Melbourne, is under investigation after a complaint was made by the parents of Brock Ravest, nearly 4, that he had been lost in a lift.
Mother Kristen Ravest, speaking for the first time about the incident, said that in December 2004 Brock mentioned to his father that he had been stuck in the centre's shared lift. More worrying for his parents, he said he was found not by his paid carers but "by a man in a suit".
His father, Daniel, went to ask the centre staff, who had not mentioned the incident, for an explanation.
"They were trying to cover it up. First they said he had gone to another room and he was lying," Mrs Ravest said.
Single mother Victoria Harper, who was on waiting lists at eight centres, says she had no choice but ABC. With an estimated 175,000 children on waiting lists, many parents say they grab the first place available.
Ms Harper signed up daughter Estelle, then about eight months old, at ABC East Melbourne in December 2002. Soon after, she began noting that nappy changing practices were unhygienic, dirty bins were accessible to children and advertised menus did not reflect what was served.
Ms Harper said Estelle also fell ill with pneumonia before her first birthday and had to go to hospital, which she suspected was linked to being in the East Melbourne centre.
"At the time, other children in her room also contracted upper respiratory infections," she said. Ms Harper also had concerns about staff ratios for babies and what appear to her to be high numbers of junior or agency staff.
"Basically, it was inadequate child care," she said. "They didn't have the infrastructure."
A senior ABC child-care worker said she believed that food at the centre where she worked in a Melbourne suburb was not what most parents would assume their fees covered.
"We never struggled for food, but you'd expect it to be a lot higher (standard) than it actually was," the worker said. "When you break it down, our budget works out to under $1.50 a child each day - that covers breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and a late snack - they never blatantly say 'Keep costs down', but it is a strict budget - and that's the end of it."
Another worker, who witnessed the transition when an outer Melbourne centre belonging to the Peppercorn chain was taken over by ABC, said: "It was hard: the grass was always synthetic. If toys were broken, you had to get two quotes and put it in with the director at the centre. Then the director would contact head office and they would approve or disapprove it. Even if a microwave or anything like that was broken, it would take time."
ABC was recently fined for inadequate supervision of a runaway toddler at a centre at Hoppers Crossing three years ago. However the fine of $200 is unlikely to have a serious impact. In February the company said it had more than doubled first-half earnings to $38 million and was on track to a forecast full-year profit of $88 million.
An Australia Institute survey of child-care workers found that community centres rated the highest quality, with small commercial centres scoring nearly as highly. Corporate chains were held in lower regard on indicators such as staff turnover and ratios, as well as facilities and food.
However two-thirds of Australian child-care centres are now run for profit, with most for-profit centres run by ABC or its two main rivals Hutchison's Child Care Services and Child's Family Kindergartens.
The commercial child-care sector has been aided by Federal Government child-care subsidies to parents, and the end of direct grants to non-profit community centres in the late 1990s.
(Source: The Age)
A partner in one of the law firms hired to write the new Industrial Relations laws has said that protection for employees under the laws were just "smoke and mirrors".
Freehills partner Anthony Longland was speaking recently to a Sydney Law Finance Conference.
Mr Longland said that award provisions such as penalty rates for shift work, overtime, weekend and public holiday work were "protected but not protected" because they could be abolished by the employer if they were specifically over-ridden by a WorkChoices agreement.
(Source: ACTU)
Freehills partner Anthony Longland was speaking recently to a Sydney Law Finance Conference.
Mr Longland said that award provisions such as penalty rates for shift work, overtime, weekend and public holiday work were "protected but not protected" because they could be abolished by the employer if they were specifically over-ridden by a WorkChoices agreement.
(Source: ACTU)
