Pearls and Irritations

Albert Littler, a Master Painter, senior union official of the OPDU and CFMEU, and fierce advocate for the industrial rights of painters and decorators, died in September 2024, after years of suffering with asbestosis. Among Albert’s many claims to notoriety were headlines in the Herald Sun calling him an Art Bully and that he was the only trade union official that Jeff Kennett had taken a swing at.

Albert was active in the Labor Historical Graves group and was a founding trustee director of CBUS. This was one of the Eulogies presented at Albert’s memorial at Victorian Trades Hall – a building which Albert helped to make a home to artists and which over the course of his life, he helped to restore.

Albert Littler – Master Painter, Union Official, Art Bully and Activist

I’m privileged to be here with you in this beautiful and historic hall to speak at this celebration of the life of our dear friend and comrade Albert Littler and I’d like to thank Albert’s family for this opportunity.

My first memory of Albert Littler was at Northlands Secondary College in 1993. He was dressed in his heavily paint splattered overalls and his union cap emblazoned with union badges, a bucket of white paint by his side and an extension roller in hand, as he dabbed at the ceiling of a well-used classroom. Albert was there in solidarity with the community of Northland Secondary College and to draw media attention to the school’s closure by then Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett.

The Northland dispute was destined to light a fire in the heart of Albert Littler – a person who was as much community activist as trade union leader. Alby believed that education at the very least lifted the bottom line for working class kids, and at best empowered and developed enlightened, critical leaders of the future. Albert was always proud of his own trade qualifications, his technical skills and knowledge and the disciplined path he pursued to become a Master Painter. He loved the diversity of his community and admired the inclusion that characterised the school’s culture. As a person who had spent a lifetime finding creative ways to redistribute wealth, he despised the corporate greed underlying motives to close the school. Albert also liked to get under the skin of his enemies and boasted that he was the only trade union official that Jeff Kennet had taken a swing at. So, he fought along with great community figures, built enduring alliances and made friends – not least of which was his friendship with Raffaela Galeti- Brown who remains the principal of the magnificent centre of learning that Northland Secondary college has become today. Their unity and collectivism won.

Alby was a tough and professional trade union leader. He recruited and organised constantly. He was a hands-on, hard-working trade unionist who fought hard for the wages and conditions of his members. Not a big bloke, he knew when to bring in reinforcements when bosses and corporate heavies tried to intimidate or stand over him or his members. He understood the game and he understood that the job of a trade unionist is to unite not to divide. His initial reservations about bringing his OPDU members into the amalgamated CFMEU in 1993, was overridden by his dedication to make the CFMEU into the great, inclusive, militant and strong union that it became. It was his deepest regret even as he was dying from asbestosis, that internal divisions and draconian anti-union laws threatened the very existence of the union that he, along with other great trade union leaders, had worked so hard to build.

Albert lived the adage think global act local. Albert represented the union at international forums and hosted delegations from unions from all over the world. He supported national liberation struggles in Africa, Ireland and Timor Leste. He organised as effectively in the city as he did in the regions and was well known in central and east Gippsland for his picket on the Omega spy station. Publicans and shop keepers loved the business that Alby’s picketers brought to the region.

Albert was a firm believer in showing appreciation to those who had assisted in struggles by putting on events to celebrate wins. In this way he strengthened the bonds that support our collective actions. A notable example of this was the Grand Final breakfast in the Regent Theatre that Albert founded in collaboration with MUA’s Dick Ryan, the Marriner family and his great friend Marie Picton, after the 1998 waterfront dispute. This event became an institution on the trade union AFL calendar.

Most of all Alby was passionate about the Health and Safety of his members. Albert read prolifically and researched widely. He raised awareness and then actively ran campaigns against the deadly use of solvents, asbestos and lead-based paint in the workplace. He wrote quality OHS material, lobbied Health and Safety Authorities and politicians, placed bans and ran pickets – organising until the job was done. He organised in the James Hardie factory in Braybrook and attributes this work to his contracting asbestosis – the vile disease that eventually killed him.

Albert was a great mentor. In a male dominated industry, he stood out as a person who facilitated and encouraged the participation of women. I think this is equally true of his work in the community and in politics. Although he liked to test the boundaries of feminist thought and cheekily asked women at Trades Hall if they’d like him to “open the door for you, love?”, he was at ease working collaboratively with women, a trait I put down to his having grown up in a family of strong, intelligent and hardworking women – his mother and sisters in particular.

When people like Albert devote themselves to the Trade Union movement it is all consuming. Their dedication and commitment push them beyond normal time constraints and energy levels. Families often miss out on precious moments with their loved one. Albert was no exception. Yet his dedication to the union did not diminish his love and pride in his family. Family was always on Albert’s mind and he spoke endlessly of his sons – the high and the lows of their careers, interests and love lives. He was proud of you Chris even when you were on opposite sides of the thin blue line and you Brendan even when Woodside football club lost a match. Alby loved his grandchildren to bits and was totally chuffed to be a great grandfather. Albert was a lucky trade union official – he enjoyed the support of his family throughout his life, in good times and bad.

Frank and I have very many wonderful memories of summer holidays shared with Albert, Brendan and his grandson Rian and with the various Heidelberg locals that Albert thought could do with a holiday and who he brought along. Tommy and Trae were notable additions to our Woodside family. Albert taught us how to fish and how to blow up a tinnie. Rarely without his rod, Alby always ended the day with a visit to the local and, with beer replacing rod, struck up endless conversations with the local punters – such was his ability to connect with people. This was true of all the trips we shared, though he did come unstuck in Thailand after drinking copious beers with my brother and ending up in ICU at River Kwai Hospital. It seemed that wherever we went, Albert made friends and allies.

Alby, you really were the best of friends to Frank and I – a comrade, a scallywag and a soul-mate. We couldn’t help but love you and, like your family, friends, comrades, members and partners in crime, here and elsewhere today, we are very grateful for your huge legacy and the memories that we will hold forever.

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