Illawarra unions have distanced themselves from violent protests in Melbourne, saying right-wing extremists had been leading some of the worst behaviour.
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And South Coast Labour Council secretary Arthur Rorris said while he didn't support people being forcibly vaccinated, steps were essential to make workplaces safe.
The SCLC on Wednesday unanimously voiced its "disgust" at the protests, which it called a "crude and deplorable attempt by extreme right wing elements" to derail the efforts to keep people safe.
"No-one has the right or freedom to increase the risk of infecting their workmates and their families with the [coronavirus] or otherwise putting them in harm's way," a SCLC statement said. "Workplace safety is not a choice."
"This is not a perfect situation - it's a crisis," Mr Rorris said. "We have to take whatever steps are necessary to protect lives, to protect the health of our workers and our community.
"In this situation there can be no freedom, no greater liberty, than the freedom to return home after work alive, and preferably not infect and kill your family in the process. This should not be that difficult to comprehend and to do."
Mr Rorris said safety measures were already commonplace in workplaces.
"I don't think anyone should be sat in a chair and forcibly injected with a vaccine. What I do think is required are the strictest of laws that when you enter into a workplace, that the laws are there to protect your safety and your colleagues'.
"If one of those laws or public health orders are that you need to be vaccinated to stop you or your colleagues being infected, then I say it's the most logical and reasonable thing that you can do, particularly in a pandemic.
"You can't walk into the steelworks without PPE - protective gear - you can't spray a car without a mask and stay in business. How on earth do we expect to run businesses without having basic orders in place to ensure workers are not infected?"
The protests included union members from the construction industry, and anti-vaccination chants, but Mr Rorris said it can't be seen as "union" activity.
"There may be union members, there may be golf club members, there may be people from all walks of life," he said.
"What I do know is that t here are some very extreme right-wing elements there who have no interest in our public health."
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