Decision details

Moved by Councillor Scott, seconded by the Chair (the Lord Mayor) –

It is resolved that:

(A)      Council note:

(i)         the Municipal Employees’ Union was established on 20 March 1903;

(ii)        the Federated Clerks’ Union of Australia, NSW Branch, was first registered on the 6 April 1908;

(iii)      these member organisations merged on 21 May 2003 to become the United Services Union (USU);

(iv)      the United Services Union represents local government, energy, airline and clerical and administrative employees throughout NSW and the ACT, with over 32,000 members;

(v)       the United Services Union’s members are those which make up the local government workforce and are critical to the ability of councils to perform our important functions;

(vi)      when considering local government achievements, history favours remembering the elected officials, often failing to recognise the work of all the workers which the United Services Union represents. When Prince Alfred laid the original foundation stone of the City of Sydney Town Hall, his name memorialised, however, the USU represents the people that laid the thousands of stones on top of that which make up the Town Hall we sit in today;

(vii)     for its 120 years, the United Services Union have worked to protect and enhance members’ wages and conditions;

(viii)    they encourage their members to be active in building a stronger and fairer community; and

(ix)      they provide a specially trained United Services Union Support Team to all financial members; and

(B)      the Lord Mayor be requested to write to General Secretary Graeme Kelly OAM and the United Services Union congratulating them for their 120 years of service and thanking their workers for their efforts for our City.

Carried unanimously.

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