Bargaining Update – Meetings #9 and #10
29 August 2024
Dear Members,
Over the last two days, we continued to bargain with Sydney and NSW Trains management. During the course of the two days, we finalised our claims relating to Sections 4 (Rail Operations and Loco) and 5 (Infrastructure) of the Agreement.
Questions remain about what capacity the management representatives in the room have to either agree or disagree, and at times tensions rose as claims were dismissed as being outside “bargaining parameters”. Despite multiple requests, it is no clearer what those parameters are, or what they mean. Nevertheless, there were some great arguments put forward by EA delegates on some issues important to members, such as:
- Resolving the issues around part-time CSAs
- Reintroducing control rooms and garrisons removed from stations
- Inserting associated working into the Agreement
- Creating one shunter classification to cover everyone performing shunting work
- Dead animal allowance
- Increasing the amount for on call periods
- Mandating two meal allowances per shift spent away from a Network Base for Section 5.
You may recall that yesterday we advised that Sydney Trains and NSW Trains were likely to peddle some misinformation about our application for a multi agreement. Well, like clockwork, this afternoon they produced some. We’ve extracted the relevant bits from their “EA24 Update No.8” sent around 1630hrs this afternoon below.
“[The Rail Agencies] are only bargaining on that basis (a single enterprise agreement)”
False. If the Fair Work Commission issues what is known as a “Single Interest Employer Authorisation”, the Rail Agencies will have no choice but to bargain for a multi. They can’t simply pull out of bargaining because they don’t like it.
“Having a Multi-Enterprise Agreement would mean that Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink employees will be covered by an agreement with different conditions, different employers and different employees.”
False. The Agreement and its conditions would remain the same, subject to negotiation, which is always the case during bargaining. Introducing light rail would not change the conditions of Sydney Trains and NSW Trains members in any way.
“Our current Single Enterprise Agreement has been developed over many years specifically by our people, for our people. It is tailored to meet the needs of the Rail Agencies and our employees.”
Partially true. Remember, every bargaining round, the Rail Agencies resist any changes or improvements to your conditions. They never simply give you a condition or pay rise. Union members fight for it each time. The Agreement is attributable to the hard work of union members over many decades and will continue to be like this well into the future. It is always up to union members what our enterprise agreement looks like, not management. Remember, last bargain management wanted two agreements for each agency, not one!
Finally, in response to our application for a multi enterprise agreement, the Independent Bargaining Representatives (IBRs) were required to advise their thoughts on it to the Commission. Multiple IBRs objected to our ability to take industrial action and sided with the employers, advising the Commission that they believed the bosses were acting in the “public interest” and the unions were not. Members will make up their own minds, but remember IBRs are a throw back to WorkChoices – an era for workers that we never want to revisit.
In unity,
RTBU NSW