ACTU backs Gillard but queries judgment

Prime Minister Julia Gillard still has the support of the union movement despite concerns about the government’s judgment in allowing Gina Rinehart to import workers, ACTU secretary Dave Oliver says.

Ms Gillard is facing another round of leadership speculation following the government’s decision to allow the mining billionaire’s company to import 1700 workers for its Roy Hill Iron Ore project in the Pilbara, in Western Australia.

With government whip Joel Fitzgibbon reportedly canvassing votes to resurrect former prime minister Kevin Rudd, Mr Oliver said the ACTU remained a supporter of Ms Gillard.

“The prime minister and the government still have the support of the ACTU,” he told AAP in Sydney on Monday.

“We don’t get a vote in these matters.”

But Mr Oliver said with youth unemployment still high, the skilled migration plan was a poor reflection on the government’s judgment.

“A good idea is not just to give a tick to a mining billionaire to import 1700 workers from overseas without adequately testing the market or giving opportunities for workers to able to work in that mining area,” he said.

“It calls into question the judgment of the government in regards to the announcement that was made, particularly the timing of the announcement.”

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