The Union is working hard to support members in Melbourne during the recently announced lockdown. 

We are very pleased to report that Jetstar is doing the right thing for members affected by the lock down in Victoria. Jetstar have agreed that no-one will be stood down in Victoria. Instead, Jetstar will implement the following arrangements for 7 days:

  • For the first 48 hours after lock down, Members will be paid for their rostered hours including overtime and extensions).
  • After the first 48 hours, Members will be paid their ordinary time rate of pay (no overtime or extensions) for their rostered hours of work.

Local management will advise employees if they do not to attend work for a particular shift (without loss of pay).

This arrangement will be reviewed next week. The USU/ASU will be involved in these discussions. We will be by your side until this lockdown is over.

Employees who have responsibilities in relation to the supervision of school aged children due to school closures can have their particular needs met on a case by case basis – please raise this with your local management.

These are difficult times and you should seek help if you need it. Organisations such as Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636) and Life Line (13 11 14) are available if you need it.

Your USU/ASU delegates also met with management today to discuss other issues that have arisen at the airports.

Annual Leave

We can announce a win for Jetstar workers.

Jetstar has agreed to publish annual leave plans in advance on staff notice boards and update it weekly. It will mean that employees can better assess what dates are free and have a conversation with the ADM about taking leave.

Maternity Leave

We believe there are cases where employees have not received their proper maternity leave entitlements. Due to COVID impacts as a minimum, maternity leave for part-time employees will use calculated using:

  • At Tullamarine, Sydney, Brisbane, Coolangatta and Cairns airports, the minimum weekly part-time hours of twenty-five (25) hours.
  • At Hobart, Adelaide, Launceston and Avalon airports, the minimum weekly part-time hours of twenty (20) hours.

In some cases, employees may have been paid below the minimum engagement hours.

We have asked Jetstar to audit all maternity leave payments to ensure they are compliant with the Enterprise Agreement. If you are unsure if you have been underpaid, please speak with your delegate or organiser to keep the pressure up for the audit.

Pass this bulletin to your colleagues who aren’t in the union. They can join atwww.usu.org.au/join. 

If you have any questions about this email or need any assistance at work, please contact your USU organiser Thomas Russell on 0419 761 320 or via email at trussell@usu.org.au