Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.Victorian Trades Hall Council. The voice of Victorian workers since 1856.

Government bargaining agenda forces union stop-work meetings

The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) says Centrelink clients may need to reschedule appointments during October as union members prepare for stop-work meetings across Australia.

Starting Monday 3 October and continuing for the following three weeks, Centrelink workers will hold a series of rolling stop-work meetings over stalled enterprise bargaining agreement talks.

CPSU’s Paul Ingwersen says that “Rather than focusing on sensible outcomes, Centrelink has been taking a hard-headed ideological approach to bargaining as if trying to pre-empt the new IR laws.

“This approach is needlessly making life more difficult for Centrelink clients and placing services at risk, as workers facing losing conditions have been given the limited choices of either taking industrial action, signing an AWA, or accepting management’s sub-standard EBA offer.

“Centrelink is a key government service provider to 6.8 million Australians and our members take great care to perform their jobs to the highest standard. It is only with the utmost reluctance that they are stopping work, but the Government appears intent on using Centrelink to road test its industrial relations agenda.

“Centrelink refuse to guarantee workers a choice to go on the collective agreement. They refuse even to agree to renegotiate the next EBA with the union when a majority of employees request it. This is a prime example of the Government’s ideological agenda being placed ahead of fair outcomes and is a bellwether for how it sees the future of industrial relations.

“Centrelink’s services are far too important to the Australian community to be jeopardised by Government ideology.

“The Government has long styled itself as ‘the worker’s friend’. If there was any truth in that, it would support Centrelink workers, not force them to take action to defend basic rights and conditions such as working hours, allowances, leave, redundancy entitlements and advancement criteria.

“For many years Centrelink workers have accepted moderate wage increases. Their wages are below many public sector agencies which do similar work, so CPSU members are seeking a minimum increase of 12.5% over three years,” said Mr Ingwersen.

Centrelink dispute heats up

The temperature is rising in the campaign by Centrelink workers for a fair certified agreement. 
On Thursday 29 October the CPSU issued a series of emails and posters calling on Centrelink CEO Jeff Whalan to get directly involved in fixing the stalemate in negotiations.
In response, Centrelink management have cut staff access to the union’s website and e-mails.

The CPSU’s Paul Ingwersen said: “Staff were saying ‘Wake Up, Jeff!’ Well, it looks like he got out of the wrong side of bed.  Cutting off staff access to their union’s website is a petty act that will do nothing to help end this dispute.”
Previously notified rolling stop-work meetings look set to go ahead over the next few weeks, despite a last minute wage offer by Centrelink last night.
“While management increased their offer from 11.3% over three years to 12.5% - with many strings attached - they have failed to address major staff concerns about  working hours,  scheduling, redeployment and cuts to employment conditions,” said Mr Ingwersen.
“While the union negotiation team has reservations about the latest offer, we were in the process  of an on-line members vote to  consider the proposal. Denying staff the right to have their say on this issue is just getting people’s backs up,” added Mr Ingwersen.

The union has also accused Centrelink management of “jumping the gun” on the Howard Government’s harsh new IR laws.
“Centrelink  have threatened union delegates, and are forcing AWAs on some new staff. Now management have taken away any online contact. This is a denial of peoples’ basic rights to representation and information. The Government claims workers are free to join unions but, as an employer, they are denying their own staff the right to meaningful contact with their union,” Mr Ingwersen said.
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Comment: Paul Ingwersen, CPSU Division Secretary 0408 395 940
www.cpsu.org.au  : 1300 137 636


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