Qld OKs child labour strikebreakers

Date: 20 October 2008

The Queensland Government is allowing the use of child labour to circumvent union work bans in an ongoing dispute over pay in the state health system.

The Australian Workers' Union is shocked that high school students have been brought in to clean, move trolleys and clear rubbish at two Gold Coast hospitals.

School students asked to work in areas with violent patients

At the Robina Hospital on the Gold Coast students had been sent into the psychiatric wards, an area where workers usually require specialist training, just five minutes after a violent patient had to be subdued by security.

High school students break strike Local union officials are not clear whether the children have been paid to do the work normally done by AWU members.

"There is the ultimate danger to any school kids coming into a hospital in school uniform and especially in a psych area," AWU Queensland Branch Secretary, Bill Ludwig, said.

"And although we can't discuss what problems that psychiatric patients may or may not have, we don't know what risk these children may be in."

Were parents told children used to act as strike breakers?

"Our understanding is they don't have any training so it's a risk to the kids and a risk to the patients with infection control.

"Our question is 'have parents given their children permission to act as strike breakers for Queensland Health?'

"Who from Queensland Health authorised school kids to do work that has been banned in heated industrial action?"

For further information

WWW:	http://www.awu.net.au/

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