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Nine years after Kasey Balchin and her dad Andrew made the front page of the Daily Mercury for taking part in Mackay’s Labour Day march, the teen was back again on Monday proudly flying the flag for the Electrical Trades Union.
But this year, the family tradition of the Labour Day march ahead without her dad.
“I mainly march for my dad. I love marching and singing out all the war cries,” Kasey said.
“Today is one of my special days. Me and my dad have been doing this march for years now.
“I remember when I was four years old, I also got my picture in the Daily Mercury back then.
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At age 24, Linda-Ann Northey experienced sexual harassment in the workplace when she was faced with making a choice no woman should ever have to make.
The Mackay Women’s Services executive opened up about the incident – which was the catalyst for her first activism campaign – during the 2021 Mackay Labour Day march.
“In a relatively small organisation, I was the sixth woman in two years threatened with the sack if I didn’t sleep with the state service manager,” the Services Union member said.
“I chose to leave my job rather than think about complying with such a threat.”
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The Mackay and Whitsunday regions are in for another bout of rain after a damp Anzac Day long weekend.
Bureau of meteorology forecaster Kimba Wong said the region had about 26mm of rain on Saturday with a few extra millimetres on Sunday.
Ms Wong said the region could expect more rain from Wednesday, with one to two millimetres per day generally and 20-40mm in isolated pockets.
She said Friday and Saturday were likely to be on the wetter end with a high pressure system building along the east coast.
“There is also the potential for a few thunderstorms at the start of the weekend with the chance of an upper trough forming,” Ms Wong said.