Vic: John Halfpenny, "Leopard of the Left", dies

AAP General News (Australia)
12-20-2003
Vic: John Halfpenny, "Leopard of the Left", dies

By Alan Gale

MELBOURNE, Dec 20 AAP - From the highpoint of leading 100,000 protesters against the
Kennett government to the lows of being charged with fraud, former union leader John Halfpenny's
name was synonymous with the left, workers' rights and protest.

In the three decades before the tightly-controlled environment of the current federal
government's industrial relations legislation, John Halfpenny was the master of the fast
strike, the huge protest and the exaggerated claim.

Born in 1935 in the Victorian wheat town of Donald, John Halfpenny died this morning
in Tasmania, where he had lived since retiring in ill health from his nine year position
as secretary of the Victorian Trades Hall Council in 1995.

He was 67.

Former colleague Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) national secretary
Doug Cameron today mourned the death of his mentor.

"He was so young, had so much potential and had contributed to much to Australia," he said.

"John Halfpenny made a magnificent contribution to the trade union movement and to
the Australian way of life and was responsible for ensuring the preservation of much of
Australia's manufacturing industry."

This preservation was won through long, bitter strikes and heated confrontation which
his bitter conservative opponents said were learnt while in Russia for 16 months as a
member of the Communist Party of Australia (CPA).

In fact, for most of that time he was clashing with his Russian teachers over the inflexibility
of party rule, something he was not afraid of administering himself.

He resigned from the CPA 1979 and joined the ALP three years later, making an unsuccessful
Senate bid in the mid 1980s.

He dominated the Victorian Union movement from his positions as Trades Hall secretary
(1987 to 1995), Amalgamated Metal Workers Union state secretary from (1972 to 1987) and
before that secretary of the Amalgamated Engineering Union from 1970 and an organiser
from 1969.

Halfpenny's record included the eight week rail strike of 1976, the nine week electricity
strike of 1977 and the month long garbage strike of 1978.

After Labor lost power in Victoria over financial mismanagement in 1992 and the cut-to-the-quick
Liberal government of Jeff Kennett began to dismantle much of the public sector, Halfpenny
became the unofficial Opposition.

He led strikes over changes to public transport, health, utilities, and WorkCare, culminating
in the November 1992 state-wide strike that attracted 100,000 marchers through Melbourne.

Awarded the AM in 1998, Halfpenny was also called "The Leopard of the Left" because
of his links with corporate chiefs.

He was the first union leader to make friendly contact with "the other side" and counted
as his friends former Ansett head the late Sir Peter Abeles, the late Robert Holmes a'Court
and current Visy boss Richard Pratt.

His house was a converted Carlton warehouse and the self-taught gourmet Italian chef
had a reputation for stylish dinner parties with extravagant wine lists.

His low point came in 1998, when he was fined $4,000 and ordered to pay $6,000 in costs
in 1998 for giving false information to WorkCover.

The charges related to a claim for about $26,000 in workers' compensation benefits
while he earned income as a consultant.

He repaid the money.

AAP ag/sco

KEYWORD: HALFPENNY OBIT

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