More of an Australia specific question, but how strong are the Unions that they could lobby for this change? How likely is it that Unions could win on this issue?
More of an Australia specific question, but how strong are the Unions that they could lobby for this change? How likely is it that Unions could win on this issue?
Sadly, unions here are not as strong as they used to be. Union membership has declined drastically over the past few decades. However, the unions have direct links with the Labor Party. The Labor...
Sadly, unions here are not as strong as they used to be. Union membership has declined drastically over the past few decades.
However, the unions have direct links with the Labor Party. The Labor Party was originally created to be the political arm of the labour movement, and unions still hold a lot of sway within the power structure of the party. Therefore, unions have a direct line to government when the Labor Party is in power.
Also, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) can be quite influential in its own right when it wants to. It advertises, it mobilises people, it participates in public debates.
I don't think the unions will win on this issue on their own. However, there has been a growing feeling among Australians in general that religious organisations probably shouldn't have quite as many exemptions from the anti-discrimination laws as they do - and the unions adding their voice to this growing chorus will push Australia closer to removing these exemptions.
It probably won't happen under the current Liberal government, though. They have too many connections to religious conservative people and organisations. They can't afford to piss them off by removing their exemptions from the anti-discrimination laws. However, the next time that we have a federal Labor government, there might be enough community voices - including their own union allies - to convince them to remove these exemptions.
More of an Australia specific question, but how strong are the Unions that they could lobby for this change? How likely is it that Unions could win on this issue?
Sadly, unions here are not as strong as they used to be. Union membership has declined drastically over the past few decades.
However, the unions have direct links with the Labor Party. The Labor Party was originally created to be the political arm of the labour movement, and unions still hold a lot of sway within the power structure of the party. Therefore, unions have a direct line to government when the Labor Party is in power.
Also, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) can be quite influential in its own right when it wants to. It advertises, it mobilises people, it participates in public debates.
I don't think the unions will win on this issue on their own. However, there has been a growing feeling among Australians in general that religious organisations probably shouldn't have quite as many exemptions from the anti-discrimination laws as they do - and the unions adding their voice to this growing chorus will push Australia closer to removing these exemptions.
It probably won't happen under the current Liberal government, though. They have too many connections to religious conservative people and organisations. They can't afford to piss them off by removing their exemptions from the anti-discrimination laws. However, the next time that we have a federal Labor government, there might be enough community voices - including their own union allies - to convince them to remove these exemptions.