Health, aged care, and disability support workers cannot socially distance from the people they work with and are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19. Many of these frontline heroes are in low paid and insecure work and cannot afford to take time off. Saying no to a shift can mean the difference between putting food on the table or going hungry. Paid pandemic leave for health, aged care and disability support workers is not just the right thing to do, it is a critical public health measure. We see the growing evidence coming from Victoria. As at 23rd July: - The Victorian Government figures state there are 447 COVID cases linked to 35 aged care sites. - 529 healthcare workers have been infected so far. - 80% of COVID transmissions in Victoria have been in workplaces. - Of 3,810 cases between 7-21 July, nearly 90% (3,400) did not isolate between feeling sick and getting a test. And the rest of Australia is not immune. We cannot have Australian workers going to work with a runny nose or mild symptoms because they are worried about how they will pay for the groceries at week’s end. We cannot wait until the situation gets worse. Stop stalling - fund paid pandemic leave for health, aged care, and disability support workers.

Our bus drivers fear being killed or seriously injured for simply doing their job. We are aware of 9 assaults since last month alone. As our recent Bus Driver Safety Survey shows, these are not isolated incidents. There is a wider crisis engulfing our bus network where bus driver abuse has become so normalised it is simply seen as part of the job. Since March 2020, more than 40% of drivers now believe their job has become more unsafe and dangerous because of physical assaults and verbal abuse. Over 60% have been verbally abused and 7% physically assaulted in only 3 months. We can’t rely on ‘official’ Government figures. The TWU and our members know the true figures are much higher. Bus drivers have stopped reporting physical and verbal assault because daily abuse is now just seen as part of the job and they believe nothing gets done. Despite repeated attempts to engage with the former Minister for Transport, Stephan Knoll, to tackle this issue he repeatedly stuck his head in the sand and ignored the desperate calls from drivers to improve safety across the bus network. Minister Knoll did not even bother to show up to the TWU Bus Safety Summit which was attended by all key stakeholders, including bus operators, driver representatives, SAPOL, and the Opposition. Bus drivers deserve respect and protection. The TWU has consistently improved safety and conditions and we will not stop fighting. Now we need your help as we demand the Marshall Government introduces the highest industry standards of safety for drivers!

The Liberal Government has announced that from 28 September the coronavirus supplement for JobSeeker recipients will be cut from $550 per fortnight to $250. This will leave at least 1.3 million unemployed workers surviving on as little as $815 a fortnight. This rate is only guaranteed til December when further cuts are expected. Young people on Youth Allowance will be forced to survive on even less. The Liberal government will also reduce JobKeeper to $1200 per fortnight in October, and to $750 per fortnight for people working less than 20 hours per week or who work multiple part time jobs. From next year, it will drop again to $1000, and $650 for those working less than 20 hours per week. An estimated 1.2 million people will no longer be on JobKeeper after September. Many will be forced onto JobSeeker. This will increase the number of people living below the poverty line in Australia. Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg have tried to pitch this announcement as the government continuing to support workers in this crisis. It’s a lie. These measures will hugely exacerbate the economic crisis facing millions of Australian families. Many workers who are already struggling to survive on a payment roughly equivalent to the minimum wage. With these cuts many will be unable to meet rent or mortgage payments, or repayments on the substantial debt that many have built up over the course of this crisis.

International Students alongside domestic students at Flinders University matter as we continue contributing to enriching the cultural environment, academic fields and economic development of Australia and the world. By supporting International students and standing in solidarity with us, Flinders University not only demonstrates to the State, the country and the world its pioneer and leading responsibility for International communities, but the university will also continue sustaining academically and socially its reputation as the most desirable destination for international students in the world. As an International Students Collective, we need immediate actions to support our fellows and we can do it!

The Liberal Government has announced that from 28 September the coronavirus supplement for JobSeeker recipients will be cut from $550 per fortnight to $250. This will leave at least 1.3 million unemployed workers surviving on as little as $815 a fortnight. This rate is only guaranteed til December when further cuts are expected. Young people on Youth Allowance will be forced to survive on even less. The Liberal government will also reduce JobKeeper to $1200 per fortnight in October, and to $750 per fortnight for people working less than 20 hours per week or who work multiple part time jobs. From next year, it will drop again to $1000, and $650 for those working less than 20 hours per week. An estimated 1.2 million people will no longer be on JobKeeper after September. This will increase the number of people living below the poverty line in Australia. Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg have tried to pitch this announcement as the government continuing to support workers in this crisis. It’s a lie. These measures will hugely exacerbate the economic crisis facing millions of Australian families. Many workers who are already struggling to survive on a payment roughly equivalent to the minimum wage. With these cuts many will be unable to meet rent or mortgage payments, or repayments on the substantial debt that many have built up over the course of this crisis.

Our people need this Centre reopened. We need skills and lifestyle programs and social engagement opportunities for our diverse group of residents. I am asking for your support by signing this petition to Kingston Council to get Patterson Lakes Community Centre reopened.

The Whitten Oval was once a public space - owned by us the public, for our use. A while back, the Western Bulldogs negotiated to fence the area. It was apparently just to allow the gates to be closed for ticketed matches. Fast forward, and the gates are now permanently locked. And the Barkly St end is now a car park for the players’ expensive cars. Meanwhile, the players aren’t even in the state!! They're currently in a lockdown hub in Queensland. The takeover of public spaces by for-profit sporting clubs is ALWAYS a problem. But especially during COVID-19 it’s more important than ever that we have open spaces to safely move around. We're calling on the Western Bulldogs to honour the terms under which they have been gifted the use of our public land: to leave it open for us outside of training and playing times. That's how it was always meant to be, and how it works at Arden Street where North Melbourne train. And if the Bulldogs won't play ball, we want the State Government to enforce the terms of the agreement that they signed on our behalf.

UNSW is set to push 256 FTE (full time equivalent) staff through forced redundancies this year, after hundreds of staff have agreed to take on voluntary redundancies over the past few months. The university is trying to shed 500 FTE positions this year - a whopping 7.5% of total staff. Faculties will be merged down from eight to six. Our tutors, lecturers, demonstrators, admin and support staff are being attacked! Despite boasts from the Public Relations team about a climb in UNSW’s position in international university rankings, the student-to-staff ratio stands at 41:1 according to Times Higher Education. This compares poorly to other Go8 universities and will only get worse with the current massive round of job cuts. Now UNSW management want to cut staff numbers even further! This is on top of the trimester system which has delivered tens of millions in surplus revenue to the institution, the sacking of a third of casual jobs at the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, and the implementing of course cuts in T2, including 10% of all Arts courses. With funding cuts at a federal level, our quality of education will continue to be undermined. University management is justifying these massive attacks and job cuts by crying poor and citing their inevitability, as always. This is despite simultaneously committing $1 BILLION to building ANOTHER military campus in Canberra just weeks prior! UNSW has $933 million in cash reserves stashed away, overpaid executive salaries like that of Vice Chancellor Ian Jacobs on a bloated $1 million, as well as extensive assets and investments they could borrow against. Staff are the lifeblood of our education. Throughout this crisis, university staff continue to have bills to pay, families to support, and the need to maintain a roof over their heads. It’s clear the university is financially capable of providing jobs and courses, but they are refusing to. Instead, they want to force the cost of this crisis onto staff and students! The future of our university and our education is on the line. We refuse to accept the logic that staff and students should be forced to pay for the crisis in the university’s profitability, and we need to fight back against these attacks! Shovan Bhattarai, UNSW SRC Education Officer

The world of computers, cell phones, gaming systems and the Internet are constantly expanding and changing, and it is not uncommon today that children are more knowledgeable than adults. Here are the problems that we want to solve in terms of Technology Awareness 1. Poor Sleep Habits 2. Depression 3. Addiction 4. Increased Bullying 5. Distraction We want to solve this problem because we, as a student we seen a lot of people who experiencing difficulties about technology awareness not only for a student but specially for everyone.

The lack of any meaningful consequence for companies and bosses who kill workers is disgraceful. A $40,000 fine for an employer who kills someone by clearly failing to operate within health and safety laws is completely out of step with the most basic of community expectations around accountability under the law. There must be real and meaningful consequences for companies and CEOs who chose to put profit ahead of the lives of West Australians.

I am a union member and believe in economic justice. The workers of Australia are facing an unprecedented global economic downturn not of their making which is leading to job losses. The more job losses we have the more the economy shrinks. We need more jobs to fight off the recession and reducing the working week will create jobs. The New Economics Foundation (NEF) in Sweden, argue there are at least 10 good reasons to reduce the working week and it doesn't harm the economy, in fact it has a positive effect by creating; 1. A smaller carbon footprint 2. A stronger economy 3. Better employees 4. Lower unemployment 5. Improved wellbeing 6. More equality between men and women 7. Higher quality, affordable childcare 8. More time for families, friends and neighbours 9. Making more of later life 10. A stronger democracy Unemployment is one of the greatest crimes for a society, it creates untold misery and poverty. Our communities deserve better, fight for a reduced working week.

Security Officers deal with violence and aggression at work every day. They put themselves on the line to protect health workers so they can provide essential services to the people of WA. Security Officers working on a casual basis in the NMHS sites have been treated differently to every other group of public sector workers across the state. Some of these officers have been working 'casually' for up to a decade - and we say 'enough is enough! Security officers get hurt at work protecting others and face the stresses of dealing with aggression and violence on every shift. Continuing to employ them casually is just not good enough. Security Officers deserve the protection of permanent employment so they can do their best to protect WA Health workers and the community.