Academic literature on the topic 'Industrial relations Western Australia Pilbara'

On 24 May 2020, Rio Tinto detonated an area of the Juukan Gorge in the Pilbara in Western Australia as part of its iron ore mining operations, damaging two ancient rock shelters with profound cultural significance to the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) People.1 The incident has brought international attention to the importance of Indigenous cultural heritage within broader environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations.

We compare the iron ore sectors and mining regions of Malmfälten in Sweden and the Pilbara in Australia. Both are physically isolated and the product is economically vital, but we find differences in industrial relations which accord with what would be expected in coordinated and liberal market economies. A closer examination, attentive to history and geography and in which changes in institutional form and function are highlighted, reveals, however, that these differences are more apparent than real, and that there is a common neoliberal trajectory. This analysis also suggests that changes in these sites at times drive transformations in national industrial relations.

Larval production and recruitment underpin the maintenance of coral populations, but these early life history stages are vulnerable to extreme variation in physical conditions. Environmental managers aim to minimise human impacts during significant periods of larval production and recruitment on reefs, but doing so requires knowledge of the modes and timing of coral reproduction. Most corals are hermaphroditic or gonochoric, with a brooding or broadcast spawning mode of reproduction. Brooding corals are a significant component of some reefs and produce larvae over consecutive months. Broadcast spawning corals are more common and display considerable variation in their patterns of spawning among reefs. Highly synchronous spawning can occur on reefs around Australia, particularly on the Great Barrier Reef. On Australia’s remote north-west coast there have been fewer studies of coral reproduction. The recent industrial expansion into these regions has facilitated research, but the associated data are often contained within confidential reports. Here we combine information in this grey-literature with that available publicly to update our knowledge of coral reproduction in WA, for tens of thousands of corals and hundreds of species from over a dozen reefs spanning 20° of latitude. We identified broad patterns in coral reproduction, but more detailed insights were hindered by biased sampling; most studies focused on species ofAcroporasampled over a few months at several reefs. Within the existing data, there was a latitudinal gradient in spawning activity among seasons, with mass spawning during autumn occurring on all reefs (but the temperate south-west). Participation in a smaller, multi-specific spawning during spring decreased from approximately one quarter of corals on the Kimberley Oceanic reefs to little participation at Ningaloo. Within these seasons, spawning was concentrated in March and/or April, and October and/or November, depending on the timing of the full moon. The timing of the full moon determined whether spawning was split over two months, which was common on tropical reefs. There were few data available for non-Acroporacorals, which may have different patterns of reproduction. For example, the massivePoritesseemed to spawn through spring to autumn on Kimberley Oceanic reefs and during summer in the Pilbara region, where other common corals (e.g.Turbinaria&Pavona) also displayed different patterns of reproduction to theAcropora. The brooding corals (Isopora&Seriatopora) on Kimberley Oceanic reefs appeared to planulate during many months, possibly with peaks from spring to autumn; a similar pattern is likely on other WA reefs. Gaps in knowledge were also due to the difficulty in identifying species and issues with methodology. We briefly discuss some of these issues and suggest an approach to quantifying variation in reproductive output throughout a year.

The elusive and rare Night Parrot Pezoporus occidentalis is being continually searched for and sightings reported. It was thought possibly to be extinct until recent discoveries of two dead specimens in Queensland (1999, 2006), a confirmed sighting in the Pilbara in 2005, the first photograph of a live bird in Queensland in 2013, subsequent discoveries in western Queensland, and a photograph of a Night Parrot in flight from the interior of Western Australia in 2017. We describe our sightings of the Night Parrot from the arid region of Western Australia on 24 November and 5 December 2009. In addition, we briefly describe other possible sightings from the same location and adjoining Millrose pastoral station.

KrisEnergy Pumps Cambodia’s First Crude in 17 Years A Cambodian concession has commenced production after years of delays in a venture between Singapore’s KrisEnergy and the government. The crude comes from oil fields in Block A, comprising 3083 km2 of the Khmer basin in the oil-rich Gulf of Thailand, off the southwestern coast of Sihanoukville. The concession will progress in phases once new wells are commissioned and completed. Kelvin Tang, chief executive of KrisEnergy’s Cambodian operations, called the 29 December event “an important strategic milestone” for the company, while Prime Minister Hun Sen hailed the first extraction as “a new achievement for Cambodia’s economy” and “a huge gift for our nation.” Ironbark Australian Exploration Well Declared Dry; Co-Owner Stocks Plummet BP has come up dry at its Ironbark-1 exploration well, the anticipated multi-trillion-scf prospect off the west Australian Pilbara coast. The disappointing prospect was once seen as a potential gas supplier to the emptying North West Shelf (NWS) LNG plant, where BP is a co-owner, within 5 to 10 years. After 2 months of drilling to a total depth of 5618 m, “no significant hydrocarbon shows were encountered in any of the target sands,” according to co-owner New Zealand Oil and Gas (NZOG). Petrorecôncavo Buys Petrobras’ Onshore Bahian Stake for $30 Million Brazilian operator Petrobras on 23 December signed a contract with independent producer Petrorecôncavo to sell its entire stake in 12 onshore E&P fields, the Remanso Cluster, in the state of Bahia. The sale value for the fields was $30 million; $4 million was paid on signing, $21 million at the closing of the transaction, and $5 million will be paid 1 year after that. The Remanso Cluster comprises the onshore fields of Brejinho, Canabrava, Cassarongongo, Fazenda Belém, Gomo, Mata de São João, Norte Fazenda Caruaçu, Remanso, Rio dos Ovos, Rio Subaúma, São Pedro, and Sesmaria. Zion Spuds the Israeli Megiddo-Jezreel #2 Well On 6 January, Zion Oil and Gas officially spudded the Megiddo­Jezreel #2 on its 99,000­acre Megiddo­Jezreel license area in Israel. “With unique operating conditions in the COVID­19 environment, our crews have performed an amazing task,” Zion CEO Robert Dunn said. “Mobilizing a rig into a new coun­try during a pandemic and rigging up is the most challenging part of the drilling operation,” Zion’s vice president of operations, Monty Kness, added. Exxon Declares a Dud at Second Guyana Well Exxon Mobil said on 15 January that its exploration well in the prolific Stabroek Block off Guyana’s coast did not find oil in its target area. Exxon, which operates the Stabroek Block in a consortium with Hess and China’s CNOOC, has made 18 discoveries in the area in 5 years, totaling more than 8 billion BOE, for a combined potential for producing up to 750,000 B/D of crude. The Hassa­1 exploration well was the giant’s second setback to its drilling campaign in recent months. Heirs Holdings Buys 45% of Shell Nigeria’s OML 17 Field Shell Nigeria announced on 15 January it had completed a $533 million sale of its stakes in an onshore OML 17 oil field in Nigeria to African strategic investor Heirs Holdings, Nigeria’s largest publicly listed conglomerate. The deal is one of the largest oil and gas financings in Africa in more than a decade, with a financing component of $1.1 billion provided by a consortium of global and regional banks and investors. Heirs Holdings, in partnership with Transcorp, one of the largest power producers in Nigeria with 2000 MW of installed capacity, purchased 45% stake in the field. It acquired the stakes of Shell, Total, and Eni to further its expansion into the oil and gas industry. Apex Discovers Oil in Egypt’s Western Desert Privately held independent E&P firm Apex International Energy, backed in part by UK energy investment firm Blue Water Energy, on 18 January announced a discovery in the Southeast Meleiha Concession (SEM) in the western desert of Egypt. The discovery was made at the SEMZ-11X well located 10 km west of Zarif field, the nearest producing field. The well was drilled to a total depth of 5,700 ft and encountered 65 ft of oil pay in the Cretaceous sandstones of the Bahariya and Abu Roash G formations. Testing of the Bahariya resulted in a peak rate of 2,100 B/D with no water. Additional uphole pay exists in the Bahariya and Abu Roash G formations that can be added to the production stream in the future. Kosmos Announces Oil at Winterfell Well Dallas-based E&P independent Kosmos Energy announced on 19 January an oil discovery in deepwater US Gulf of Mexico. The Winterfell discovery well, the product of infrastructure-led exploration (ILX), was drilled to a total depth of approximately 23,000 ft and is located in approximately 5,300 ft of water. This subsalt Upper Miocene prospect in off-shore Louisiana encountered approximately 85 ft of net oil pay in two intervals. ILX exploration, which has featured prominently in upstream operators’ portfolios in recent years of relatively low oil prices, is exploration around producing hubs that can be hooked up to those facilities easily and cheaply. The development sidesteps the need for costly and time-consuming individual hub construction. Equinor Gets Permit To Drill North Sea Wildcat Well The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Equinor a drilling permit for wildcat well 31/11-1 S in the North Sea offshore Norway, 62 km south of the Troll field. The drilling program is the first exploration well to be drilled in production license 785 S, awarded on 6 February 2015 (APA 2014). Operator Equinor and Total E&P Norge are 50/50 partners in the license, which consists of parts of Blocks 26/2 and 31/11. Petrobras, ExxonMobil Hit Hydrocarbons at Urissanê Well, Offshore Brazil Brazilian state-owned Petrobras announced on 29 January it had discovered hydrocarbons in a well located in the Campos Basin presalt off Brazil’s coast of Campos dos Gotyacaze in the State of Rio de Janeiro. Well 1-BRSA-1377-RJS (informally called Urissanê) is located in Block C-M-411, at a depth of 2950 m approximately 200 km offshore. Petrobras, which operates the block in a 50/50 partnership with Exxon Mobil, said it would analyze the well data to better target exploratory activities and assess the potential of the discovery. BP Offloads 20% Share of Oman’s Block 61 To PTTEP Marking another significant step in its divestment program, BP will sell a 20% participating interest in Oman’s 3950 km2 Block 61 in central Oman to Thailand’s national PTT Exploration and Production (PTTEP) for $2.59 billion. BP will remain operator of the block, holding a 40% interest.‎ The sale comprises $2.45 billion payable on completion and $140 million payable contingent on preagreed conditions.‎ After the sale, BP will hold 40% interest in Block 61, while OQ holds 30%, PTTEP ‎20%, and ‎Petronas 10%.‎ Block 61 contains the largest tight gas development in the Middle East.

The geographical distribution and host relations of the five species of Trombella parasitising adult 'short- horned' grasshoppers in Australia are described on the basis of data derived from a screening of tens of thousands of grasshoppers in the Australian National Insection Collection and covering 133 localities and 335 individual hosts in 79 species. Most of the data refer to T. cucumifera Southcott, which occupies a large region across northern Australia, where it is sympatric with T. fusiformis Southcott, and extending south into New South Wales. T. rugosa Southcott and T. sternutor Southcott are sympatric in the south- west of Western Australia. T. calabyi Southcott is represented by a single specimen from the arid east-Pilbara area of Western Australia. Host species are listed for each species of mite. Eumastacidae and Tetrigidae appear not to be attacked, but within the other two Australian families (Pyrgomorphidae and Acrididae) representatives of all of the five Australian subfamilies serve as hosts. For T. cucumifera, attack rates of 20-67% of the captured samples of some species of those families were recorded at some localities. There is a suggestion that the most abundant of the geophilous grasshoppers present at any locality may be favoured and that the species of Trombella do not differ in their utilisation of the grasshopper species accessible to them. There is no evidence of sex bias in host selection. The most common number of mites found on a single host individual is one in the three mite species with adequate data; it ranges up to 11, but numbers above five are rare. All species are attached almost exclusively to the membrane between prosternum and mesosternum of the host, or the membranous insertion of coxa 111.

This dissertation describes and interprets the effects of the significant changes to the workers compensation, industrial and related laws that occurred in the early 1990s in Western Australia. These could be characterised as motivated by a desire by the then Coalition Government to reduce access to legal representation in compensation claims, limit the potential of workers to claim damages for negligence and reduce the use of collective bargaining mechanisms to resolve industrial disputes. Arguably, the common philosophical themes were to individualise the relationship between employer and employee and to reduce the bargaining strength of workers. In general terms, these themes were presented under the guise of flexible workplace relations. Whether these outcomes were achieved is not the subject of this analysis, rather, the aim is to show that one (perhaps unintended) consequence of the legislative changes of the early 1990s was to create significant areas of overlap in various employment related laws. These areas of overlap have led to some difficulties within the various tribunals involved in the resolution of employment related disputes. Over the last decade, the issues arising from the 1990s amendments have crystallized into important principles, which are discussed in this work. The thesis of this dissertation is that an examination of the development of the industrial and workers compensation laws in Western Australia in the 1990s establishes sufficient commonality between the industrial relations and compensation systems to warrant the rationalisation of these two jurisdictions.

This dissertation describes and interprets the effects of the significant changes to the workers compensation, industrial and related laws that occurred in the early 1990s in Western Australia. These could be characterised as motivated by a desire by the then Coalition Government to reduce access to legal representation in compensation claims, limit the potential of workers to claim damages for negligence and reduce the use of collective bargaining mechanisms to resolve industrial disputes. Arguably, the common philosophical themes were to individualise the relationship between employer and employee and to reduce the bargaining strength of workers. In general terms, these themes were presented under the guise of flexible workplace relations. Whether these outcomes were achieved is not the subject of this analysis, rather, the aim is to show that one (perhaps unintended) consequence of the legislative changes of the early 1990s was to create significant areas of overlap in various employment related laws. These areas of overlap have led to some difficulties within the various tribunals involved in the resolution of employment related disputes. Over the last decade, the issues arising from the 1990s amendments have crystallized into important principles, which are discussed in this work. The thesis of this dissertation is that an examination of the development of the industrial and workers compensation laws in Western Australia in the 1990s establishes sufficient commonality between the industrial relations and compensation systems to warrant the rationalisation of these two jurisdictions.

The historiography of Australian racism has principally "blamed" the labour movement for the existence of the White Australia policy and racist responses to the presence of migrant workers. This study argues that the motivations behind ruling class agitation for the White Australia policy have never been satisfactorily analysed. To address this omission, the role of the Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) in race relations is examined. As an elite-dominated, cross-class organisation with links to every section of society, it is argued that the RSL was a significant agitator for migrant exclusion and white unity in the interwar period. The thesis employs case studies, oral history and qualitative assessment of various written sources, such as newspapers, archival records and secondary material, in order to plot the dynamics of racist ideology in two major mining centres in the interwar period. The results suggest that, although labour organisations were influenced by racist ideas and frequently protested against the presence of migrant workers, it was also true that mining employers had a material interest in sowing racial division in the workplaces they controlled. The study concludes that labour movement responses to migrant labour incorporated a range of different strategies, from demands for racist exclusion to moves towards international solidarity. It also reveals examples of local and migrant workers living, working, playing and striking together in ways that contradict the dominant view of perpetual tension between workers of different nationalities. Lastly, the case studies demonstrate that local employers actively encouraged racial division in the workplace as a bulwark against industrial militancy.

The Western Australian State Government’s local government reform programme, initiated in February 2009, provides the context for this research. Nedlands, a local government in Perth’s western suburbs, resolved to participate in this reform programme and signed a Regional Transition Group Agreement with Subiaco local government in August 2010. The purpose of the Regional Transition Group was to prepare a business plan to investigate the potential benefits and viability of a Nedlands and Subiaco amalgamation. Whilst the local government of Nedlands is currently investigating the more operational and technical aspects of local government reform in the merger feasibility study, this research focused on employee readiness, more intangible but no less important. The difficulties of achieving success with organisational change initiatives are well documented. A number of models of planned organisational change have been developed to address these difficulties and support successful change and are outlined. This research highlights the value of the first phase of planned change, namely readiness for change, where organizational members are prepared for and become supporters of change. It also highlights the importance of change communication with respect to developing employee readiness. Definitions and some of the dimensions of ‘readiness for change’ are outlined. The five dimensions of readiness for change - discrepancy, appropriateness, principal support, efficacy and valence - provide the ‘lens’ through which readiness for change at Nedlands is explored. From this perspective, the documentation communicating local government reform at Nedlands was analysed. These dimensions were also used to ascertain, from the perspective of the Nedlands' managers, their level of readiness and the readiness of the employees of Nedlands for local government reform. The findings suggest that Nedlands local government has not consciously planned to ‘ready’ employees for local government reform. A number of management recommendations are made to strengthen the change readiness message communicated by the Nedlands local government and to support the development of the Nedlands employees’ readiness for change.

The view, the man told me, “does not disappoint.” We are standing in the parking lot of Woodside’s North West Shelf Visitor Centre looking out upon the massive onshore liquefied natural gas plant, which includes processing and domestic gas trains, condensate stabilization units, and storage and loading facilities. It is a full-sensory experience: whirring, humming, hammering, pounding, whistles, announcements, and an eternal gas flame, set against the blue hue of the Indian Ocean, which brings to mind the flags settlers once used to claim lands. Woodside built the industrial plant on the Burrup Peninsula in the Dampier Archipelago, in the Pilbara region along the northwestern coastline of Western Australia on one of the most important petroglyph and sacred sites in Australia and “Country” to the Traditional Owners, the Ngarluma/Yindjibardni, Yaburara Madudhunera, and Wong-Goo-tt-oo people....