Bill Shorten
Bill Shorten
William Richard "Bill" Shortenis an Australian politician who is the current Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Australia, in his capacity as Leader of the Australian Labor Party, after being elected party leader at the 2013 Labor leadership ballot. Shorten led Labor to the 2016 federal election, however despite the 14-seat swing to Labor, the Liberal/National Coalition retained majority government by a single seat − the closest federal majority result since the 1961 election...
NationalityAustralian
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth12 May 1967
CityMelbourne, Australia
CountryAustralia
Labor must work harder to attract and retain members. The party should be cheaper to join with discounted rates available for union members as well as for students, pensioners, and people out of work.
My preference is that employees pay their union dues, but what I also get is that I'd rather someone be in the union than not in the union.
To the best of my knowledge, when I became national secretary and, indeed, Victorian secretary, the - my predecessors in the union had detected wrong activities, activities which arent in the best traditions of the AWU or, indeed, trade unionism.
What I've done as a union leader and what literally thousands of other union representatives do, is make sure that we have co-operation in the workplace. What I get is that where employees are well treated, employers do well.
If I am elected leader, my shadow opposition team will actively incorporate the policy contributions of all our members by instituting policy action committees as recommend by the 2010 National Review.
Workplace relations is about getting the best out of people. An argument which says that the only way we can compete with other nations in the world is engaging in a race to the bottom in terms of pay rates, penalty rates, protections on rosters, getting rid of family friendly provisions - that is not Australia's future.
We commissioned an independent statutory economic body - the Productivity Commission - to review the possibility of funding a disability scheme. The commission returned with a view that it could. Then it becomes an issue of national will.
Labor should not be about creating monuments on hills or statues in parks. Labor's monuments and statues are when a young person can find a job, when a person with disability can get access to the ordinary life that others take for granted.
We're not slaves if we're workers, we're not owned by our employers.
They are able to point the camera around the various parts of their fairly cramped environment.
This is a form of tunnel boring. It turns the rock in front of a machine into dirt.
The report simply shows that business leaders don't like to practice what they preach.
I'm a Christian and a supporter of marriage equality under the law.
Once upon a time, I thought denial was a river in Egypt. It's actually the attitude of the Abbott government.