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
Trusting people to pursue their own futures invariably provides better outcomes. Money goes where it is needed, rather than being absorbed by administration costs.
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.
I want to build a Big Labor party. A party of big ideas. A party which is deeply connected to the community. A party which reflects our diverse nation.
Fleeing persecution is not a crime. And we do not seek to pander to a noisy, tiny minority who will never embrace modern multicultural Australia. But there are important truths we must face. There is a history and a reality that we cannot ignore. The challenge before us is real, the questions we grapple with as elemental as life and death.
Modern Australian trade unionism and the unionist that I am doesn't rely on a class war view that somehow that the interests of employees and managers are in two separate spheres and they're irreconcilable. I believe that when people can go to work and be happy, satisfied, engaged, where the employer is getting employees who feel their interests are aligned with the employer, you get productivity. This is the future of Australian workplaces.
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.
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.
It's going to be at least 48 hours plus.
It's going to take a long time. You have to replenish them physically in order that they are able to cope with the next stage of the work.
We're not slaves if we're workers, we're not owned by our employers.