Even more so, essential humans. But, in America, they are expected to work long hours with no health care and low pay and no union representation or protections, exposing themselves to this virus for major earning companies like McDonalds and other Americans treat them with a lack of respect, even arguing about wearing a mask while sharing the same small indoor space.

Yesterday, I went to two more rallies for Black Lives. The morning-early afternoon one focused on what is blatantly wage theft and corporate mistreatment of essential workers. The second one in the evening was against Trump's decision to bring the Feds to Chicago and to stand with Portland.

I think we need to remember that people of color have made the most sacrifices during this pandemic and they are the most vulnerable. Many of them do not have health care or the same quality of health care and therefore this virus is killing a disproportionate amount of people of color vs people who are white. They are making just enough to survive so that mainly white people can comfortably pick up a Big Mac and are risking getting sick and getting their families sick. There used to be a bonus pandemic pay given out during this pandemic but most businesses have discontinued it. Meanwhile, here's where we're at in Trump's America. The Billionaires have just gotten 434x richer.:

www.cnbc.com/2020/05/21/american-billionaires-got-434-bil...

**All photos are copyrighted**

Photographed during the May Day Marches, Malaga 2018.

Do not use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission..

Keep your hands off!!

© All rights reserved.

DSC_9305 (12604)

This is two sides of an original Railways worker's union banner. (Somehow the signwriter left off an 'e' in 'employees'.)

Workers began to form unions in Australia from the 1830s. But it would still be some time before their campaigns for better pay and conditions would be realised. It wasn't until 1853 when Transportation of convicts from Britain ended, that this form of penal servitude came to a close.

Then in 1856 workers had a victory in the enshrinement of an eight hours working day. In 1907 a truly momentous court decision gave workers the right to a "living wage". This was in fact a significant decision worldwide and effectively turned Australia into a workers' paradise (relatively speaking).

"In 1907, the Harvester Decision set a ‘living’ or ‘family’ wage. It was supposed to allow an unskilled labourer to support a wife and three children, to feed, house, and clothe them. This became the basis of the national minimum wage system in Australia." www.fwc.gov.au/about-us/history/waltzing-matilda-and-suns...

From this time on Australia has always had a minimum award wage and arbitration to enable this wage to be indexed against the rising cost of living.

On this International Workers Day, let us remember the millions of workers all over the world, especially in the world's poorest countries, who do the hardest, dirtiest and most dangerous work for the lowest pay. They contribute so much to our daily lives, yet they ask for so little in return, just enough so they can feed their families. Too often, they are invisible; we don't see their blood, sweat and tears. They have to work long hours. They have no rights, no health care, no sick leave, no minimum wage, no pension. If they get hurt, they lose their jobs. They have no choice, they have to work to survive and feed their families. On this May Day, let us remember their sacrifices and support their struggles for a better life.

This workers' banner includes as a central theme the 8 hours day. On April 21 in 1856 stonemasons walked off the job in Melbourne where they were building the new university. They demanded better working conditions in the form of a reduced maximum number of daily working hours. At the time people could work up to 14 hours in the day.

www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/eight-hour-day

This was an idea first proposed by the British social radical Robert Owen in 1817. It was a nice way of dividing the day into 8 hours of work, 8 hours of recreation and 8 hours of rest.

Photographed during the May Day Marches, Malaga 2018.

Do not use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission..

Keep your hands off!!

© All rights reserved.

DSC_9280 (12579)

Giulio Regeni (Trieste, 15 January 1988 – Cairo, 3 February 2016) was an Italian researcher: rigorous, lucid, and deeply human. He belonged to that rare category of young intellectuals who do not observe the world from above, but enter it, listen to it, and study it from the inside. His work was built on field research, on real voices, and on a sincere attention to the lives of ordinary people.

Regeni focused on social and economic dynamics related to labour. In Egypt, he studied independent trade unions and workers’ forms of organization: a sensitive field, because wherever people try to unite to defend rights and dignity, authoritarian regimes perceive a threat. His work was not propaganda. It was knowledge, analysis, and documentation. And this is precisely why it became dangerous: social truth—about exploitation, fear, repression, poverty, and power—is never neutral for those who rule.

In January 2016 Giulio was in Cairo. On 25 January he disappeared. Days passed in silence, while his family and the public demanded answers. On 3 February his body was found. The signs of torture were undeniable, consistent with systematic methods of violence. His murder was not a private tragedy: it was a political message, a deliberate attempt to erase an investigation and intimidate anyone who tries to see too much, understand too much, name what must not be named.

Giulio Regeni became the symbol of an unbearable truth: that research itself can be treated as a crime when it touches the nerve centres of power; that studying labour rights means entering forbidden territory; that knowledge, in repressive systems, is punished as dissent.

Regeni did not die “by chance.” He was kidnapped, tortured and murdered because he was making visible what was meant to remain invisible: the machinery of repression, the imposed fear, the crushed dignity of work.

I publish these portraits to keep history from being forgotten: not the convenient version, not the one simplified by media narratives, but the true story of real people—ethical, courageous human beings—who gave their lives for human rights, for dignity, for justice, and for the protection of others, asking for nothing in return. Because those who died for the truth must not be erased by indifference.

A tree leaf goes flying by the explosion of a firecracker launched during the protest mobilization of the workers' assembly of Duro Felguera. Hundreds of families go through a difficult situation and live pending decision-making by the board of directors of the company that is evaluating to carry out a collective dismissals

Joseph Albert "Jock" Yablonski was born on March 9, 1910, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to a family of Polish immigrants. Growing up in a working-class neighborhood, he began working in the coal mines at a young age and experienced firsthand the harsh conditions, poverty, and dangers faced by miners. These early experiences shaped his lifelong commitment to justice and workers' rights.

Jablonski became an active member of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and quickly earned a reputation as a fearless and honest leader who advocated for fair wages, safer working conditions, and dignity for laborers. He married Margaret Jablonski, a supportive partner who shared his values, and together they had three children: Christine, Barbara, and Charlotte. The family lived modestly, but with integrity and a strong commitment to justice and human dignity.

During the 1960s, Jablonski began to challenge the corruption within the UMWA, led at the time by President W.A. "Tony" Boyle. Boyle ruled the union through intimidation, bribery, and violence, silencing anyone who opposed him. In 1969, Jablonski decided to run for president of the union, promising transparency, democracy, and respect for workers. His courageous campaign threatened Boyle’s corrupt control.

On the night of December 31, 1969, Jablonski, his wife Margaret, and their 25-year-old daughter Charlotte were brutally murdered in their home in Clarksville, Pennsylvania. Three gunmen, hired by Boyle’s associates, shot the family while they slept, eliminating anyone who could challenge the corrupt union leadership.

The murders shocked the nation and exposed the deep corruption in the labor movement. The investigation led to the arrest and conviction of the gunmen and eventually to the life sentence of Tony Boyle. Joseph Jablonski’s death, along with the loss of his family, became a powerful symbol of the sacrifices made by those who stand up against corruption and injustice. His legacy continues to inspire the fight for workers’ rights, honesty, and justice in labor organizations today.

This portrait is part of the REMEMBER series — a tribute to men and women who gave their lives for justice, human rights, and dignity. Each figure in this series stood up against oppression, violence, and exploitation, even when silence would have been safer.

By publishing this series, I want to awaken consciences and show that the struggles they faced — for freedom, equality, workers’ rights, and truth — continue today in many parts of the world.

These people must be remembered not to mourn, but to inspire action and courage. Their sacrifices remind us that one voice, one act of resistance, can make a difference, and that the fight for justice is ongoing.

Kolkata, a city roiled by workers’ rights movements over time announces yet another conference even as a rickshaw-puller, oblivious to much else except his own need to get through the day with enough money to make his effort worthwhile, passes it by.

Travel Blog: windyskies.blogspot.com

Chico Mendes (1944–1988) was a Brazilian activist, leader of the rubber tappers in the Amazon, and an international symbol of the fight for workers’ rights and environmental protection. Born in the state of Acre, Brazil, Mendes grew up in a family of rubber tappers and experienced firsthand the harsh working conditions and exploitation of forest workers.

As a union leader, Mendes organized rubber tappers to demand fair wages, better working conditions, and protection of their land from logging companies and wealthy landowners. He also fought to preserve the Amazon rainforest, understanding that environmental protection was directly linked to the survival and rights of local workers.

Mendes’ activism and international visibility made him a target of local economic powers. On December 22, 1988, Chico Mendes was shot dead in front of his home by hired gunmen, acting on behalf of landowners opposed to his union and environmental initiatives. His death shocked Brazil and the world, turning him into a symbol of courage, social justice, and peaceful resistance.

Today, Chico Mendes remains an example of total commitment to workers’ rights and environmental defense, reminding us that the sacrifice of those who oppose injustice can inspire future generations to continue the fight for a fairer and more just world.

This portrait is part of the REMEMBER series — a tribute to men and women who gave their lives for justice, human rights, and dignity. Each figure in this series stood up against oppression, violence, and exploitation, even when silence would have been safer.

By publishing this series, I want to awaken consciences and show that the struggles they faced — for freedom, equality, workers’ rights, and truth — continue today in many parts of the world.

These people must be remembered not to mourn, but to inspire action and courage. Their sacrifices remind us that one voice, one act of resistance, can make a difference, and that the fight for justice is ongoing.

The Australian Workers Heritage Centre is one of Outback Queensland’s premier tourist destinations and National Monument to our working men and women. Our mission is to honour all workers - past, present and future and help preserve a vitally important part of Australian heritage and culture - Our Working Life.

Located in Barcaldine in Outback Queensland, the Centre is a welcome oasis for visitors. Spread across over two hectares of beautifully landscaped gardens surrounding a tranquil billabong, the Australian Workers Heritage Centre presents a rich tapestry of exhibits capturing the spirit our nation's workers.

Including the Story of the Great Shearer’s Strike 1891, 'Working Women' Project, a 'One Teacher School', 'Working for Health' exhibition, 'Kunwarara' Railway Station and the original Australian Workers Union Hall.

Our landscaped grounds complement the visitor experience where you can enjoy a picnic or barbeque, while the kids explore our modern playground facilities.

Our centre is also home of the Young Un - Tree of Knowledge, a vibrant and beautiful Australian Ghost Gum and the only living descendant of the original Tree of Knowledge.

Stay for a few days in Barcaldine, home of the Tree of Knowledge Memorial and enjoy the friendly company of the locals who will tell the stories of their town’s very important place in Australia’s history.

Barcaldine, Queensland:

Barcaldine, in Central West Queensland, is 520km west of Rockhampton, at the intersection of the Capricorn and Landsborough Highways. It is best known as the 'birthplace' of the Australian labour movement.

The Barcaldine area was crossed by Sir Thomas Mitchell's and Augustus Gregory's expeditions (1846 & 1858). In 1863, Donald Cameron took up a pastoral run on the Alice River which he named Barcaldine Downs, after Cameron's family property in Ayrshire, Scotland. The run was partly resumed for closer-settlement holdings in the 1880s.

Barcaldine town lots were sold in 1885 and within a year several buildings were under construction. By the end of 1886 the town had been surveyed and the railway line had reached there from Jericho and Rockhampton. This was a promising beginning for the town. Numerous buildings were transferred from Jericho (bank, Masonic hall, and the Methodist and Catholic churches) and from Pine Hill (railways buildings and a court house). In 1887 a progress association was formed, a government school was opened and, most importantly, a free-flowing source of clear bore water was found.

Barcaldine started off with a rush of success, although the pace of growth overlooked hygiene precautions and there were chronic health problems and few safeguards against the supply of opium to Aboriginals.

In the late 1880s, Barcaldine became a centre of activity in western Queensland for the organisation of shearers and rural labourers. Pastoralists, concerned about this growing assertiveness, formed the Pastoral Employers' Association in Barcaldine in 1889, and reduced rates of pay for shearers. The response was a firming of union membership, and by early 1891 hundreds of shearers and rural workers were camped around Barcaldine waiting for work and threatening to take action if non-union workers were brought in. Mass meetings were held under a ghost gum, Eucalyptus papuana, the Tree of Knowledge, now commemorated as the birthplace of organised labour, trades union, and the Australian Labor Party. Clashes between police and strikers in March 1891 led to 13 leaders being gaoled on Saint Helena Island in Moreton Bay. (Nearly 30 years later one was elected shire chair.) The shearers' strike camp site and the Tree of Knowledge outside the railway station are listed on the Queensland Heritage Register.

After a settlement of kinds was reached between pastoralists and unions, Barcaldine resumed rural and related activities. An industrial sector at one end of the town had a meat processing factory, a wool scouring works, and a piggery, all generating industrial effluent. During the remainder of the 1890s a school of arts, a convent, and a hall for the divisional board were opened. There was then a slump during a three-year drought (1899 - 1902), although the Masons constructed a handsome two storey tin and timber hall (1901). The hall is heritage-listed, along with the Church of England and the war memorial clock.

Bore water kept the town going through the drought, and the return to normal seasons assisted the growth of shade trees. By the mid-1900s it was considered that, by western Queensland standards, Barcaldine was a garden city. A swimming pool opened in 1907.

Barcaldine drew freight from the south around Blackall, but that stopped when a railway branch line from Blackall to Jericho opened in 1908. Five years later there was compensation in part when a privately funded tramway between Barcaldine and Aramac, 6 km to the north, opened. In 1914 Barcaldine held its first agricultural show.

The Barcaldine Grammar (later, Saint Peter's Anglican) school began in 1915, continuing until the Depression forced its closure in 1932. Barcaldine's zenith probably occurred in 1925, both in population and prosperity, before a long term drought crippled wool production. Prices fell in 1928 and conditions deteriorated. The 1930s were a period of slow progress and low morale, with amenities in poor shape to accommodate a population influx during World War II of evacuees from seaboard towns. Postwar reconstruction began with a remodelling of the convent. The 1950s saw further recovery, with construction of a new hospital (1953), a secondary department added to the State school, a sewerage scheme, and a general upgrading of buildings and public infrastructure. Wool production was boosted by good seasons and high prices.

Barcaldine's history is littered with the charred ruins of frequent fires. As late as the 1950s there were losses, including the Western Light Soap Works. Fire-proof materials went into new buildings. A hotel was lost in 1962, but six remain until this day. One facility that never burnt down was the pool; after 73 years it was replaced by a modern facility in 1980. The bore water was good for washing, and in winter taps ran all night for a warm bath in the morning. The absence of metering encouraged profligacy. Water restrictions were imposed by the shire in 2005.

Barcaldine local government division was proclaimed in 1892 by severance from the Kargoolnah (Blackall) division. The total area of the new division was 8430 sq km and Barcaldine township held 75 - 85% of the shire's population.

The shire's main industry was sheep grazing and wool production, although beef cattle grazing grew during the 1970s to 40 000 head, and numbered nearly 65 000 in the 1990s (by comparison, there were over 610 000 sheep and lambs in 1993). Tourism became important, with six hotels and five motels in the town, although accommodation and hospitality had only 6% of the shire's employment in 2001. The leading employment sectors were agriculture (18%), construction (13.7%), wholesale and retail (14%), health and community services (9.3%) and education (8.2%). The shire's median weekly individual income was $377, less than the region's median of $407 but higher than the Queensland median ($359).

In 2008 Barcaldine Shire (8443 sq km) was amalgamated with Aramac and Jericho Shires to form Barcaldine Regional Council (53,677 sq km). The new local government area is described in a separate entry.

The town has maintained a steady population since the 1970s, down from the 1950s. It has bowls and tennis clubs, a combined racecourse and showground next door to the golf course, State and Catholic schools, a historical museum, and four churches. There is also an Australian Workers Heritage Centre (1991), a folk museum, and the 1891 shearers' camp, all places of special note. The Comet Lodge of Freemasons masonic temple (1901) is an elaborate two-storey building.

Barcaldine – and the labour movement – suffered a symbolic blow in October 2006, with the poisoning death of the heritage-listed Tree of Knowledge. However, a spectacular architect-designed new Tree of Knowledge memorial using the site and the trunk of the original tree was opened in May 2009 by Premier Anna Bligh. It features an 18 metre high cube in which 4000 suspended timbers of varying length form the tree canopy. Each May, Barcaldine celebrates the Tree of Knowledge Festival, once only a mayday parade but now including food expos and goat racing.

The area's strong labour history was also celebrated with an upgrade of the Australian Workers Union hall in 2013.

One of the town's notable hotels, the Globe (1910) was sold to the Barcaldine Regional Council in 2011 with plans to turn it into a new visitor information centre incorporating an art gallery, library, and cultural centre. The hotel had been run for almost 50 years by ALP’s Pat Ogden. Exempt from heritage listing as lacking 'genuine' State significance, work began in September 2014 on the new development.

A proposal in 2015 for an 80 000 panel solar farm on 35 hectares on the eastern outskirts of Barcaldine aimed to take advantage of the intensity of solar radiation in the area, and would make it the State's largest solar farm.

Source: Australian Workers Heritage Centre (www.australianworkersheritagecentre.com.au) & Queensland Places (www.queenslandplaces.com.au/barcaldine-and-barcaldine-shire).

Back door, Chinatown, San Francisco.

Justin

www.justingreen19.co.uk

Nur, a fisherman from childhood.He works almost everyday and night throughout the year in Bay of Bengal.But still fighting with poverty.He lost his all 3 child aged between 3-4 months.Rural doctors failed to diagnose the cause.He believes children are God's gift, nobody can change fate.

Please don't use or alter this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission.

© All rights reserved

© minhaz nizami || dr.minz@yahoo.com

The Tree of Knowledge is a ghost gum located in front of the railway station at Barcaldine, under which the workers of the 1891 Shearer's Strike met. An icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions, it symbolises the foundation of the organised representation of labour in Queensland.

Barcaldine sprang up in 1886 as the terminus of the Central Railway. The area was already settled by pastoralists and had previously been centred on Blackall. Large sheep stations were like small townships with their own working facilities, stores, worker's accommodation and tradesmen such as blacksmiths. The owners and managers of these stations had considerable power to dictate terms to an itinerant workforce recruited for the shearing season. Poor working conditions, low pay and the threat of competition from cheap foreign labour caused discontent within the industry.

Barcaldine was a natural focus for the development of unionism. As the railhead, the town drew many seasonal and casual workers. Besides shearers and hands there were navvies who had worked on the construction of the railway and carriers who had found their work reduced by it. Difficulties in finding work and financial hardship helped to build a sense of mateship and mutual support amongst sections of them. In 1887 the Central Queensland Carriers Union was formed, and discussions leading up to this are said to have been held under the gum tree which provided shade where carriers waited at the front of the railway station. At the same time, the Queensland Shearers' Union was formed at Blackall. Within a year it had 1300 members, indicating a perceived need for collective bargaining to obtain fair pay and working conditions. In 1888 the Central Queensland Labourers' Union was formed at Barcaldine. These three unions were the driving force behind the strike of 1891.

In Brisbane, the Trades and Labour Council was formed in 1885 and in 1889 became the Australian Labour Federation. At Barcaldine in the same year the Pastoral Employers' Association was founded in response and moved to reduce pay rates. Many workers now joined the unions, pushing membership of the Shearers Union over 3000 and the Labourer's Union to 2,250. Only severe wet weather in 1890 delayed a confrontation. By January 1891 union representatives had gathered at Barcaldine for meetings and pastoralists were pressing shearers to sign freedom of contract forms. A strike was called and employers began to import non-union labour from the south. Strikers, some of whom were armed, gathered at Barcaldine and set up a camp at Lagoon Creek and other places around the town.

The government dispatched police and soldiers to the area and the strikers responded by drilling and staging torchlight processions in the town. The tree in front of the station, the Tree of Knowledge, was the location of many meetings and a focus for protest. In March the situation escalated as carriers and railway workers went out in sympathy and military reinforcements arrived. Barcaldine became the focus of the whole country's interest and armed conflict was expected. However, heavy rain which limited movement and the arrest of leaders slowed momentum and strikers began to disperse. On 15 June the strike was officially called off. It had failed, but was to have far reaching effects. The following year, T.J. Ryan became the first representative of labour to be elected to the Queensland Parliament and soon after the Labor Party in Queensland was formed.

Because the area beneath the Tree of Knowledge was the scene of actions and decisions which had a profound effect on the future of labour and politics in Australia, it has become an icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions. It is also important to the people of Barcaldine as a symbol of the town's identity and historical importance. This is reflected by the name chosen for the commemoration committee formed in 1987, the Tree of Knowledge Development Committee, and by the care given to the tree. In 1990 it was discovered that the tree was infested by termites and other insects and had severe health problems. Treatment by a tree surgeon, pest control and flushing of the root system with thousands of litres of water gave the tree a new lease of life. This treatment was completed in late 1993.

In 1991, there were major celebrations at Barcaldine to mark the centenary of the Shearers' Strike. In preparation for this, the area around the tree was landscaped and a memorial to the strikers erected within the enclosure.

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

The Australian Workers Heritage Centre is one of Outback Queensland’s premier tourist destinations and National Monument to our working men and women. Our mission is to honour all workers - past, present and future and help preserve a vitally important part of Australian heritage and culture - Our Working Life.

Located in Barcaldine in Outback Queensland, the Centre is a welcome oasis for visitors. Spread across over two hectares of beautifully landscaped gardens surrounding a tranquil billabong, the Australian Workers Heritage Centre presents a rich tapestry of exhibits capturing the spirit our nation's workers.

Including the Story of the Great Shearer’s Strike 1891, 'Working Women' Project, a 'One Teacher School', 'Working for Health' exhibition, 'Kunwarara' Railway Station and the original Australian Workers Union Hall.

Our landscaped grounds complement the visitor experience where you can enjoy a picnic or barbeque, while the kids explore our modern playground facilities.

Our centre is also home of the Young Un - Tree of Knowledge, a vibrant and beautiful Australian Ghost Gum and the only living descendant of the original Tree of Knowledge.

Stay for a few days in Barcaldine, home of the Tree of Knowledge Memorial and enjoy the friendly company of the locals who will tell the stories of their town’s very important place in Australia’s history.

Barcaldine, Queensland:

Barcaldine, in Central West Queensland, is 520km west of Rockhampton, at the intersection of the Capricorn and Landsborough Highways. It is best known as the 'birthplace' of the Australian labour movement.

The Barcaldine area was crossed by Sir Thomas Mitchell's and Augustus Gregory's expeditions (1846 & 1858). In 1863, Donald Cameron took up a pastoral run on the Alice River which he named Barcaldine Downs, after Cameron's family property in Ayrshire, Scotland. The run was partly resumed for closer-settlement holdings in the 1880s.

Barcaldine town lots were sold in 1885 and within a year several buildings were under construction. By the end of 1886 the town had been surveyed and the railway line had reached there from Jericho and Rockhampton. This was a promising beginning for the town. Numerous buildings were transferred from Jericho (bank, Masonic hall, and the Methodist and Catholic churches) and from Pine Hill (railways buildings and a court house). In 1887 a progress association was formed, a government school was opened and, most importantly, a free-flowing source of clear bore water was found.

Barcaldine started off with a rush of success, although the pace of growth overlooked hygiene precautions and there were chronic health problems and few safeguards against the supply of opium to Aboriginals.

In the late 1880s, Barcaldine became a centre of activity in western Queensland for the organisation of shearers and rural labourers. Pastoralists, concerned about this growing assertiveness, formed the Pastoral Employers' Association in Barcaldine in 1889, and reduced rates of pay for shearers. The response was a firming of union membership, and by early 1891 hundreds of shearers and rural workers were camped around Barcaldine waiting for work and threatening to take action if non-union workers were brought in. Mass meetings were held under a ghost gum, Eucalyptus papuana, the Tree of Knowledge, now commemorated as the birthplace of organised labour, trades union, and the Australian Labor Party. Clashes between police and strikers in March 1891 led to 13 leaders being gaoled on Saint Helena Island in Moreton Bay. (Nearly 30 years later one was elected shire chair.) The shearers' strike camp site and the Tree of Knowledge outside the railway station are listed on the Queensland Heritage Register.

After a settlement of kinds was reached between pastoralists and unions, Barcaldine resumed rural and related activities. An industrial sector at one end of the town had a meat processing factory, a wool scouring works, and a piggery, all generating industrial effluent. During the remainder of the 1890s a school of arts, a convent, and a hall for the divisional board were opened. There was then a slump during a three-year drought (1899 - 1902), although the Masons constructed a handsome two storey tin and timber hall (1901). The hall is heritage-listed, along with the Church of England and the war memorial clock.

Bore water kept the town going through the drought, and the return to normal seasons assisted the growth of shade trees. By the mid-1900s it was considered that, by western Queensland standards, Barcaldine was a garden city. A swimming pool opened in 1907.

Barcaldine drew freight from the south around Blackall, but that stopped when a railway branch line from Blackall to Jericho opened in 1908. Five years later there was compensation in part when a privately funded tramway between Barcaldine and Aramac, 6 km to the north, opened. In 1914 Barcaldine held its first agricultural show.

The Barcaldine Grammar (later, Saint Peter's Anglican) school began in 1915, continuing until the Depression forced its closure in 1932. Barcaldine's zenith probably occurred in 1925, both in population and prosperity, before a long term drought crippled wool production. Prices fell in 1928 and conditions deteriorated. The 1930s were a period of slow progress and low morale, with amenities in poor shape to accommodate a population influx during World War II of evacuees from seaboard towns. Postwar reconstruction began with a remodelling of the convent. The 1950s saw further recovery, with construction of a new hospital (1953), a secondary department added to the State school, a sewerage scheme, and a general upgrading of buildings and public infrastructure. Wool production was boosted by good seasons and high prices.

Barcaldine's history is littered with the charred ruins of frequent fires. As late as the 1950s there were losses, including the Western Light Soap Works. Fire-proof materials went into new buildings. A hotel was lost in 1962, but six remain until this day. One facility that never burnt down was the pool; after 73 years it was replaced by a modern facility in 1980. The bore water was good for washing, and in winter taps ran all night for a warm bath in the morning. The absence of metering encouraged profligacy. Water restrictions were imposed by the shire in 2005.

Barcaldine local government division was proclaimed in 1892 by severance from the Kargoolnah (Blackall) division. The total area of the new division was 8430 sq km and Barcaldine township held 75 - 85% of the shire's population.

The shire's main industry was sheep grazing and wool production, although beef cattle grazing grew during the 1970s to 40 000 head, and numbered nearly 65 000 in the 1990s (by comparison, there were over 610 000 sheep and lambs in 1993). Tourism became important, with six hotels and five motels in the town, although accommodation and hospitality had only 6% of the shire's employment in 2001. The leading employment sectors were agriculture (18%), construction (13.7%), wholesale and retail (14%), health and community services (9.3%) and education (8.2%). The shire's median weekly individual income was $377, less than the region's median of $407 but higher than the Queensland median ($359).

In 2008 Barcaldine Shire (8443 sq km) was amalgamated with Aramac and Jericho Shires to form Barcaldine Regional Council (53,677 sq km). The new local government area is described in a separate entry.

The town has maintained a steady population since the 1970s, down from the 1950s. It has bowls and tennis clubs, a combined racecourse and showground next door to the golf course, State and Catholic schools, a historical museum, and four churches. There is also an Australian Workers Heritage Centre (1991), a folk museum, and the 1891 shearers' camp, all places of special note. The Comet Lodge of Freemasons masonic temple (1901) is an elaborate two-storey building.

Barcaldine – and the labour movement – suffered a symbolic blow in October 2006, with the poisoning death of the heritage-listed Tree of Knowledge. However, a spectacular architect-designed new Tree of Knowledge memorial using the site and the trunk of the original tree was opened in May 2009 by Premier Anna Bligh. It features an 18 metre high cube in which 4000 suspended timbers of varying length form the tree canopy. Each May, Barcaldine celebrates the Tree of Knowledge Festival, once only a mayday parade but now including food expos and goat racing.

The area's strong labour history was also celebrated with an upgrade of the Australian Workers Union hall in 2013.

One of the town's notable hotels, the Globe (1910) was sold to the Barcaldine Regional Council in 2011 with plans to turn it into a new visitor information centre incorporating an art gallery, library, and cultural centre. The hotel had been run for almost 50 years by ALP’s Pat Ogden. Exempt from heritage listing as lacking 'genuine' State significance, work began in September 2014 on the new development.

A proposal in 2015 for an 80 000 panel solar farm on 35 hectares on the eastern outskirts of Barcaldine aimed to take advantage of the intensity of solar radiation in the area, and would make it the State's largest solar farm.

Source: Australian Workers Heritage Centre (www.australianworkersheritagecentre.com.au) & Queensland Places (www.queenslandplaces.com.au/barcaldine-and-barcaldine-shire).

"L'Italia senza immigrati si fermerebbe..."

(Italy without immigrants would stop..)

Sparks will fly

Its time to clear up a mess left by a road traffic accident, time for some angle grinding & brute force, sparks will fly.

Jim Larkin was one of Ireland’s greatest champions of workers’ rights and he was present during the 1913 Strike and Lockout. Oisin Kelly’s 1980 statue sees the great trade unionist in typically combative mode.

Standing well over six feet tall, trade union leader 'Big Jim' James Larkin was an imposing figure in more ways than one. He is perhaps best known today for his pivotal role in the 1913 Dublin Lockout, where he fought for the rights of unskilled workers to unionise, coining the phrase "A fair day's work for a fair day's pay".

The Tree of Knowledge is a ghost gum located in front of the railway station at Barcaldine, under which the workers of the 1891 Shearer's Strike met. An icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions, it symbolises the foundation of the organised representation of labour in Queensland.

Barcaldine sprang up in 1886 as the terminus of the Central Railway. The area was already settled by pastoralists and had previously been centred on Blackall. Large sheep stations were like small townships with their own working facilities, stores, worker's accommodation and tradesmen such as blacksmiths. The owners and managers of these stations had considerable power to dictate terms to an itinerant workforce recruited for the shearing season. Poor working conditions, low pay and the threat of competition from cheap foreign labour caused discontent within the industry.

Barcaldine was a natural focus for the development of unionism. As the railhead, the town drew many seasonal and casual workers. Besides shearers and hands there were navvies who had worked on the construction of the railway and carriers who had found their work reduced by it. Difficulties in finding work and financial hardship helped to build a sense of mateship and mutual support amongst sections of them. In 1887 the Central Queensland Carriers Union was formed, and discussions leading up to this are said to have been held under the gum tree which provided shade where carriers waited at the front of the railway station. At the same time, the Queensland Shearers' Union was formed at Blackall. Within a year it had 1300 members, indicating a perceived need for collective bargaining to obtain fair pay and working conditions. In 1888 the Central Queensland Labourers' Union was formed at Barcaldine. These three unions were the driving force behind the strike of 1891.

In Brisbane, the Trades and Labour Council was formed in 1885 and in 1889 became the Australian Labour Federation. At Barcaldine in the same year the Pastoral Employers' Association was founded in response and moved to reduce pay rates. Many workers now joined the unions, pushing membership of the Shearers Union over 3000 and the Labourer's Union to 2,250. Only severe wet weather in 1890 delayed a confrontation. By January 1891 union representatives had gathered at Barcaldine for meetings and pastoralists were pressing shearers to sign freedom of contract forms. A strike was called and employers began to import non-union labour from the south. Strikers, some of whom were armed, gathered at Barcaldine and set up a camp at Lagoon Creek and other places around the town.

The government dispatched police and soldiers to the area and the strikers responded by drilling and staging torchlight processions in the town. The tree in front of the station, the Tree of Knowledge, was the location of many meetings and a focus for protest. In March the situation escalated as carriers and railway workers went out in sympathy and military reinforcements arrived. Barcaldine became the focus of the whole country's interest and armed conflict was expected. However, heavy rain which limited movement and the arrest of leaders slowed momentum and strikers began to disperse. On 15 June the strike was officially called off. It had failed, but was to have far reaching effects. The following year, T.J. Ryan became the first representative of labour to be elected to the Queensland Parliament and soon after the Labor Party in Queensland was formed.

Because the area beneath the Tree of Knowledge was the scene of actions and decisions which had a profound effect on the future of labour and politics in Australia, it has become an icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions. It is also important to the people of Barcaldine as a symbol of the town's identity and historical importance. This is reflected by the name chosen for the commemoration committee formed in 1987, the Tree of Knowledge Development Committee, and by the care given to the tree. In 1990 it was discovered that the tree was infested by termites and other insects and had severe health problems. Treatment by a tree surgeon, pest control and flushing of the root system with thousands of litres of water gave the tree a new lease of life. This treatment was completed in late 1993.

In 1991, there were major celebrations at Barcaldine to mark the centenary of the Shearers' Strike. In preparation for this, the area around the tree was landscaped and a memorial to the strikers erected within the enclosure.

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

This is Clerys department store on O'Connell Street in Dublin. Last December, the new owners, Natrium Ltd., had the effrontery to put a 'Christmas display' in the windows of the empty shop, even though 460 employees had been summarily dismissed and put out on the street the previous June.

The former employees are still fighting for their entitlements and for an improvement in workers' rights in general. The management in Natrium Ltd. and Cheyne Capital have refused to meet with them.

A reflection of a nearby statue of Jim Larkin, the great Irish trade union leader, can be seen in the top left of the window.

More information: www.facebook.com/justiceforclerysworkers/?fref=ts

www.irishtimes.com/business/retail-and-services/profile-t...

www.cheynecapital.com/about-us/jonathan-lourie/

The Tree of Knowledge is a ghost gum located in front of the railway station at Barcaldine, under which the workers of the 1891 Shearer's Strike met. An icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions, it symbolises the foundation of the organised representation of labour in Queensland.

Barcaldine sprang up in 1886 as the terminus of the Central Railway. The area was already settled by pastoralists and had previously been centred on Blackall. Large sheep stations were like small townships with their own working facilities, stores, worker's accommodation and tradesmen such as blacksmiths. The owners and managers of these stations had considerable power to dictate terms to an itinerant workforce recruited for the shearing season. Poor working conditions, low pay and the threat of competition from cheap foreign labour caused discontent within the industry.

Barcaldine was a natural focus for the development of unionism. As the railhead, the town drew many seasonal and casual workers. Besides shearers and hands there were navvies who had worked on the construction of the railway and carriers who had found their work reduced by it. Difficulties in finding work and financial hardship helped to build a sense of mateship and mutual support amongst sections of them. In 1887 the Central Queensland Carriers Union was formed, and discussions leading up to this are said to have been held under the gum tree which provided shade where carriers waited at the front of the railway station. At the same time, the Queensland Shearers' Union was formed at Blackall. Within a year it had 1300 members, indicating a perceived need for collective bargaining to obtain fair pay and working conditions. In 1888 the Central Queensland Labourers' Union was formed at Barcaldine. These three unions were the driving force behind the strike of 1891.

In Brisbane, the Trades and Labour Council was formed in 1885 and in 1889 became the Australian Labour Federation. At Barcaldine in the same year the Pastoral Employers' Association was founded in response and moved to reduce pay rates. Many workers now joined the unions, pushing membership of the Shearers Union over 3000 and the Labourer's Union to 2,250. Only severe wet weather in 1890 delayed a confrontation. By January 1891 union representatives had gathered at Barcaldine for meetings and pastoralists were pressing shearers to sign freedom of contract forms. A strike was called and employers began to import non-union labour from the south. Strikers, some of whom were armed, gathered at Barcaldine and set up a camp at Lagoon Creek and other places around the town.

The government dispatched police and soldiers to the area and the strikers responded by drilling and staging torchlight processions in the town. The tree in front of the station, the Tree of Knowledge, was the location of many meetings and a focus for protest. In March the situation escalated as carriers and railway workers went out in sympathy and military reinforcements arrived. Barcaldine became the focus of the whole country's interest and armed conflict was expected. However, heavy rain which limited movement and the arrest of leaders slowed momentum and strikers began to disperse. On 15 June the strike was officially called off. It had failed, but was to have far reaching effects. The following year, T.J. Ryan became the first representative of labour to be elected to the Queensland Parliament and soon after the Labor Party in Queensland was formed.

Because the area beneath the Tree of Knowledge was the scene of actions and decisions which had a profound effect on the future of labour and politics in Australia, it has become an icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions. It is also important to the people of Barcaldine as a symbol of the town's identity and historical importance. This is reflected by the name chosen for the commemoration committee formed in 1987, the Tree of Knowledge Development Committee, and by the care given to the tree. In 1990 it was discovered that the tree was infested by termites and other insects and had severe health problems. Treatment by a tree surgeon, pest control and flushing of the root system with thousands of litres of water gave the tree a new lease of life. This treatment was completed in late 1993.

In 1991, there were major celebrations at Barcaldine to mark the centenary of the Shearers' Strike. In preparation for this, the area around the tree was landscaped and a memorial to the strikers erected within the enclosure.

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

McDonald’s strike solidarity rally opposite the UK Parliament at Old Palace Yard, Westminster. Monday 4th September was the first 1 day strike called, and also the first in McDonald's history. Amongst supporters speaking were Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell, MP’s, trade unionists, strikers and others. Jeremy Corbyn could not attend the rally, but sent a message of support. The strikers were from the Cambridge and Crayford McDonalds, and were seeking an end to zero hours contracts, a minimum wage of £10 per hour and union recognition.

The Tree of Knowledge is a ghost gum located in front of the railway station at Barcaldine, under which the workers of the 1891 Shearer's Strike met. An icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions, it symbolises the foundation of the organised representation of labour in Queensland.

Barcaldine sprang up in 1886 as the terminus of the Central Railway. The area was already settled by pastoralists and had previously been centred on Blackall. Large sheep stations were like small townships with their own working facilities, stores, worker's accommodation and tradesmen such as blacksmiths. The owners and managers of these stations had considerable power to dictate terms to an itinerant workforce recruited for the shearing season. Poor working conditions, low pay and the threat of competition from cheap foreign labour caused discontent within the industry.

Barcaldine was a natural focus for the development of unionism. As the railhead, the town drew many seasonal and casual workers. Besides shearers and hands there were navvies who had worked on the construction of the railway and carriers who had found their work reduced by it. Difficulties in finding work and financial hardship helped to build a sense of mateship and mutual support amongst sections of them. In 1887 the Central Queensland Carriers Union was formed, and discussions leading up to this are said to have been held under the gum tree which provided shade where carriers waited at the front of the railway station. At the same time, the Queensland Shearers' Union was formed at Blackall. Within a year it had 1300 members, indicating a perceived need for collective bargaining to obtain fair pay and working conditions. In 1888 the Central Queensland Labourers' Union was formed at Barcaldine. These three unions were the driving force behind the strike of 1891.

In Brisbane, the Trades and Labour Council was formed in 1885 and in 1889 became the Australian Labour Federation. At Barcaldine in the same year the Pastoral Employers' Association was founded in response and moved to reduce pay rates. Many workers now joined the unions, pushing membership of the Shearers Union over 3000 and the Labourer's Union to 2,250. Only severe wet weather in 1890 delayed a confrontation. By January 1891 union representatives had gathered at Barcaldine for meetings and pastoralists were pressing shearers to sign freedom of contract forms. A strike was called and employers began to import non-union labour from the south. Strikers, some of whom were armed, gathered at Barcaldine and set up a camp at Lagoon Creek and other places around the town.

The government dispatched police and soldiers to the area and the strikers responded by drilling and staging torchlight processions in the town. The tree in front of the station, the Tree of Knowledge, was the location of many meetings and a focus for protest. In March the situation escalated as carriers and railway workers went out in sympathy and military reinforcements arrived. Barcaldine became the focus of the whole country's interest and armed conflict was expected. However, heavy rain which limited movement and the arrest of leaders slowed momentum and strikers began to disperse. On 15 June the strike was officially called off. It had failed, but was to have far reaching effects. The following year, T.J. Ryan became the first representative of labour to be elected to the Queensland Parliament and soon after the Labor Party in Queensland was formed.

Because the area beneath the Tree of Knowledge was the scene of actions and decisions which had a profound effect on the future of labour and politics in Australia, it has become an icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions. It is also important to the people of Barcaldine as a symbol of the town's identity and historical importance. This is reflected by the name chosen for the commemoration committee formed in 1987, the Tree of Knowledge Development Committee, and by the care given to the tree. In 1990 it was discovered that the tree was infested by termites and other insects and had severe health problems. Treatment by a tree surgeon, pest control and flushing of the root system with thousands of litres of water gave the tree a new lease of life. This treatment was completed in late 1993.

In 1991, there were major celebrations at Barcaldine to mark the centenary of the Shearers' Strike. In preparation for this, the area around the tree was landscaped and a memorial to the strikers erected within the enclosure.

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

Occupy Toronto's May Day march & rally, City Hall, Tuesday, May 1st, 2012 . Perhaps as many as 2 thousand people participated.....protesting for Workers' Rights globally.....and every other societal dissatisfaction. Post march, a 24 hour occupation was staged at Simcoe Park on Front Street. By-laws were eased to permit the occupation but no tents or structures were allowed. 3 people were temporarily arrested when they attempted to erect a tent. Metro police were out in full force. At times it seemed there were more police officers than protesters.

I'm late posting this ...it took place on Tuesday & overnight into Wednesday.

The Tree of Knowledge is a ghost gum located in front of the railway station at Barcaldine, under which the workers of the 1891 Shearer's Strike met. An icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions, it symbolises the foundation of the organised representation of labour in Queensland.

Barcaldine sprang up in 1886 as the terminus of the Central Railway. The area was already settled by pastoralists and had previously been centred on Blackall. Large sheep stations were like small townships with their own working facilities, stores, worker's accommodation and tradesmen such as blacksmiths. The owners and managers of these stations had considerable power to dictate terms to an itinerant workforce recruited for the shearing season. Poor working conditions, low pay and the threat of competition from cheap foreign labour caused discontent within the industry.

Barcaldine was a natural focus for the development of unionism. As the railhead, the town drew many seasonal and casual workers. Besides shearers and hands there were navvies who had worked on the construction of the railway and carriers who had found their work reduced by it. Difficulties in finding work and financial hardship helped to build a sense of mateship and mutual support amongst sections of them. In 1887 the Central Queensland Carriers Union was formed, and discussions leading up to this are said to have been held under the gum tree which provided shade where carriers waited at the front of the railway station. At the same time, the Queensland Shearers' Union was formed at Blackall. Within a year it had 1300 members, indicating a perceived need for collective bargaining to obtain fair pay and working conditions. In 1888 the Central Queensland Labourers' Union was formed at Barcaldine. These three unions were the driving force behind the strike of 1891.

In Brisbane, the Trades and Labour Council was formed in 1885 and in 1889 became the Australian Labour Federation. At Barcaldine in the same year the Pastoral Employers' Association was founded in response and moved to reduce pay rates. Many workers now joined the unions, pushing membership of the Shearers Union over 3000 and the Labourer's Union to 2,250. Only severe wet weather in 1890 delayed a confrontation. By January 1891 union representatives had gathered at Barcaldine for meetings and pastoralists were pressing shearers to sign freedom of contract forms. A strike was called and employers began to import non-union labour from the south. Strikers, some of whom were armed, gathered at Barcaldine and set up a camp at Lagoon Creek and other places around the town.

The government dispatched police and soldiers to the area and the strikers responded by drilling and staging torchlight processions in the town. The tree in front of the station, the Tree of Knowledge, was the location of many meetings and a focus for protest. In March the situation escalated as carriers and railway workers went out in sympathy and military reinforcements arrived. Barcaldine became the focus of the whole country's interest and armed conflict was expected. However, heavy rain which limited movement and the arrest of leaders slowed momentum and strikers began to disperse. On 15 June the strike was officially called off. It had failed, but was to have far reaching effects. The following year, T.J. Ryan became the first representative of labour to be elected to the Queensland Parliament and soon after the Labor Party in Queensland was formed.

Because the area beneath the Tree of Knowledge was the scene of actions and decisions which had a profound effect on the future of labour and politics in Australia, it has become an icon of the Labor Party and Trades Unions. It is also important to the people of Barcaldine as a symbol of the town's identity and historical importance. This is reflected by the name chosen for the commemoration committee formed in 1987, the Tree of Knowledge Development Committee, and by the care given to the tree. In 1990 it was discovered that the tree was infested by termites and other insects and had severe health problems. Treatment by a tree surgeon, pest control and flushing of the root system with thousands of litres of water gave the tree a new lease of life. This treatment was completed in late 1993.

In 1991, there were major celebrations at Barcaldine to mark the centenary of the Shearers' Strike. In preparation for this, the area around the tree was landscaped and a memorial to the strikers erected within the enclosure.

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

2016 May Day March for Workers and Immigrant Rights, Seattle.

Thousands of man,women and childen collecting coal from Jadukata River,Shunamganj,Bangladesh.

Please don't use or alter this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit permission.

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"I found it very humiliating and the whole experience quite shocking." Pauline Konopka.

At 6.00pm on Friday 12 June 2015, employees of Clerys department store in Dublin were told that the business was closing. They were given an hour to gather personal belongings and were then escorted to the exit by hired security personnel.

Clerys—dating back 162 years and owned since 2012 by Gordon Brothers Group, an American venture capital company—had been secretly sold in the dead of night. The business was split into retail and property sections prior to the deal going through. The retail section was sold for €1 and duly declared bankrupt, thus denying the employees and others of their rightful dues. The Clerys building was then sold separately.

Gordon Brothers Group walked away with a handsome profit from the property transaction and instantly washed their hands of all responsibility for their former employees. Those employees—some of whom had spent a lifetime in Clerys—lost all of their accumulated redundancy entitlements and were eventually paid minimum statutory redundancy by the Irish government.

The Clerys building was bought by Natrium Ltd. (a consortium consisting of D2 Private, controlled by property developer Deirdre Foley, with John Skelly and Ronan Daly) and Cheyne Capital, London. Both companies have steadfastly refused to meet the former Clerys employees or government representatives.

The former Clerys employees are now campaigning for a change in the law that will protect others who may find themselves in a similar situation.

Justice for Clerys Workers: www.facebook.com/justiceforclerysworkers

This portrait was taken as part of the Certificate in Photography and Digital Imaging evening course at the National College of Art and Design (NCAD) in Dublin.

Lens: Pentax SMC 75mm

Film: Kodak Tri-X 400 pushed to 800.