Rebecca Fawcett has been appointed national secretary of the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU), taking over from Melissa Donnelly after Donnelly was named secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions last month.
Fawcett, who was previously the CPSU’s deputy secretary, led the union’s work during the first round of Australian Public Service-wide bargaining and was involved in the Your Rights at Work campaign against the Howard government’s WorkChoices laws in the mid-2000s.
In a statement following her appointment, Fawcett said CPSU members did essential work for the Australian community and deserved secure jobs, fair pay and safe workplaces, as well as properly staffed, funded and valued public services.
Fawcett said the union would continue campaigning to bring public sector work back in-house, strengthen protections around artificial intelligence and automated decision-making, and support workers seeking pay and conditions during the cost-of-living crisis.
Her appointment comes as the CPSU continues to represent workers across Australia’s public sector, with workplace bargaining, job security, pay and the impact of new technologies among the issues highlighted by the incoming national secretary.
Source: The Guardian
By Australia By Aussie
