Labor has attracted scorn from union leaders after the party’s caucus voted to support the federal government’s proposed free-trade agreements (FTAs) with Indonesia, Hong Kong and Peru. Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining & Energy Union national secretary Michael O’Connor says the decision will cause ongoing tensions between sections of the union movement and Labor. From The Australian:
“This argument is not over by the decision,’’ Mr O’Connor told The Australian. “This is going to be an ongoing issue of conflict between sections of the trade union movement and the parliamentary party going forward.
“This issue is an iconic issue for many unions, and I think it’s going to be a very problematic relationship going forward as a consequence of this. How that manifests itself I am not too sure but certainly this is not a good start to this political cycle by them making this decision. The parliamentary party will have to wear the fallout”…
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Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness.
Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.
