Trade Minister Simon Birmingham said “you can’t reflect society if 90% of your members of parliament were chosen from trade unions and worked in trade unions”. Let’s take a look at the numbers.
Google employees protest outside the company’s Mountain View, California, headquarters.
AP Photo/Noah Berger
The walkout by thousands of Google employees around the world was historic, both because of who was protesting and what their demands were. It may even mark the start of something new.
New York police officers at the Time Warner Center, Oct. 25, 2018, in New York after report of a suspicious package at CNN.
AP/Craig Ruttle
Bombs have long been a tool for devotees of the range of fringe American political thought. From anarchists to racists, their methods have wrought havoc – but also have created backlash.
Locals in Kiribati building a sea wall to protect the low-lying Pacific island from rising sea waters.
Elise Scott/AAP
Australian aid to the Pacific has been criticised for not focusing enough on infrastructure. But rising Chinese influence is bringing a shift of priorities.
Research shows two years of preschool has more impact than one.
Wayne Taylor/AAP
We know from research children benefit from two years of preschool, rather than one. Universal access to preschool would also return benefits to the economy, and help parents with childcare costs.
Barbed wire surrounds the the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, La.
REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
Some universities accept students into their teaching degree programs with an ATAR as low as 35. Do we need to raise the bar, or are other factors more important than a high ATAR for teachers?
A Green Bay Packers fan wears a cheese hat reading ‘NFL Owner’ – a nod to the fans’ public ownership of the franchise.
Darren Hauck/Reuters
Many Americans seem to like seeing communist ideas in action, but have a visceral reaction to the word ‘communism.’ Might it be time to refresh an old ideology with a new set of terms?
California inmates take a break from their ‘jobs’ fighting fires to play some chess.
Reuters/Lucy Nicholson
Prisoners in 17 states are striking to call attention to harsh conditions and low pay for their labor, something that may run afoul of the 13th Amendment and other legal commitments.
While Labor has strengthened its message and become more united in recent years, the Liberals seem more divided than ever.
AAP/The Conversation
The Liberals once tried to build a big tent to include a range of political positions. Recent conflicts over energy, same-sex marriage and euthanasia show this is no longer sustainable.
Husar said in a statement: “This is a very sad day for me.”
Mick Tsikas/AAP
Labor MP Emma Husar has bowed to the inevitable and announced she will not contest next year’s election – although she plans to stay in parliament until then.
The most notable – and underestimated – aspect of the vote count in Longman was the fall in support for the Coalition.
AAP/Darren England
There were lessens for both major parties in Longman- more worrying for the Coalition than Labor. It showed voter volatility and disenchantment, and that One Nation remains a powerful force.
In her statement late Tuesday Husar said: “The past few days have been incredibly difficult for my family. I’m a single mum and my first priority is the safety and wellbeing of my children.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
The NSW Labor party probe, led by barrister John Whelan, into the claims against Husar has been going on for some time but the story only broke publicly with a BuzzFeed report last week.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull campaigning at a Tasmania factory for Brett Whiteley, the Liberal candidate in the Braddon by-election.
Bob Iddon
On Saturday, five federal seats will have a byelection, with particular attention being paid to tight races in Longman and Braddon. And all have implications for the major parties and their leaders.
Is the scale telling the truth?
VGstockstudio/Shutterstock.com
While the Supreme Court’s Janus ruling dealt a blow to organized labor, three lessons from Nevada’s unions suggest things aren’t as bleak as they appear.
A retail street in Facebook’s proposed Willow Campus.
Facebook
Facebook will build a village with housing and amenities in Silicon Valley, a new version of old, unsuccessful ideas of company towns and utopian communities. Will Facebook’s town face the same fate?
Tanya Plibersek announced Labor’s plan to conduct a review of the tertiary education sector in March this year.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
Labor has promised to review the tertiary education sector if elected next year. There are some major issues, and some examples from abroad they should consider.
A quick distraction is at our fingertips – and app developers know it.
JrCasas/Shutterstock.com
Thanks to a burgeoning procrastination economy, developers are creating content that can be consumed in short spurts. What does it mean for productivity?