Green Bans, Red Union: The Saving of a City

by Verity Burgmann, Verity Burgmann

At the height of the building boom in the 1970s, a remarkable campaign stopped billions of dollars worth of indiscriminate development that was turning Australian cities into concrete jungles. Enraging employers and politicians but delighting many in the wider community, the members of the NSW Builders Labourers’ Federation risked their jobs to preserve buildings, bush and parkland. The direct impact of this green bans movement can be seen all over Sydney.

Green Bans, Red Union documents the development of a union that took a stand. Apart from the green bans movement, union members also used industrial power to defend women’s rights, gay rights and indigenous rights. In telling the colourful story that inspired many environmentalists and ordinary citizens – and gave the word ‘green’ an entirely new meaning – Meredith Burgmann and Verity Burgmann open a window on a period when Australian workers led the world in innovative and stunningly effective forms of environmental protest.

A new introduction reconsiders the impact of the now iconic green bans movement at a time when workers’ organisations around the world are looking to fight back against overdevelopment and global warming more strongly than ever before.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Australia, Environment, Politics

556 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 1998

Reviews

[Victoria Gillespie · Rating 4 out of 5]

a very good read ! I love Sydney history! while did not read the entire thing, there are definitely flaws in its purported “holistic” account of the green bans .. lionised the BLF and Mundey.. more emphasis shld be placed on the networks, webs and coalitions that brought abt change!

[Zack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely good book, would say a must-read for environmentalists. An inspiring story about a section of a union that becomes radical in many ways: rank and file militancy and organisation, environmental action - the origins of "green" as environmental, anti-apartheid and aboriginal rights, feminism and gay rights.

Demonstrates how key workers organising, and unions, are to social change and the environment. I don't think all the political conclusions are quite fully developed, but that's a minor point.

These articles are good: http://archive.workersliberty.org/wlm...

https://workersliberty.org/story/2021...

https://workersliberty.org/blogs/2010...

https://workersliberty.org/story/2011...

Good podcast episode:
https://soundcloud.com/labour-days/ep...

Good documentary is "Rocking the Foundations" (1985)

See comment below for rough notes.

[Lachlan Magrath · Rating 4 out of 5]

- 'Never eat the boss' lunch unless you occupy the site and find it on his desk.'

- RIP collective bargaining.

- High interest rates put pressure on property developers to concede to BLF demands.

- Vanguardism as the organisational problem of the Old Left, i.e. Communist Party and splits, to be overcome by Jack Mundey and BLF leadership. When a revolutionary party is not mass, it is completely inappropriate for it to consider itself an actually-existing vanguard party.

[Mrtfalls · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book, amazing union and really inspiring stories and struggles from the NSW Builders Labourer Federation. This should be mandatory reading for any trade unionists who care about the environment and for any environmentalist!

[Matthew da Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://happyantipodean.blogspot.com....