On July 8, Tim Gooden, a founding member of our Socialist Alliance branch, was elected assistant secretary of the Geelong Trades and Labor Council for the next five years. He was nominated by his union, the CFMEU, and was strongly supported by the other militant unions including the ETU, AMWU, and TCFUA.
Tim is well known around the union movement in Geelong for his prominent role in organising solidarity with various picket lines. In this city, the core militant unions band together to support the picket lines of other workers, regardless of which union is in dispute.
As well as being active on industrial issues, Tim has been a prominent link between the union movement and various social movements and campaigns. This was exemplified in his support for the community pickets against the proposed Stonehaven Power Station, which generated a lot of debate among locals about how to preserve jobs and the environment.
For most of the four years that Tim has been living in Geelong, he has been a CFMEU delegate. Before moving here, he had been very active in the FEDFA, then later in the ACT branch of the CPSU. Tim was part of a militant current within that union, Members First, and led the struggle in the ACT government for a decent enterprise bargaining agreement.
Congratulations Tim!