Virgin Australia has sent out the Proposed Agreement for you to view before voting on it.
Concerningly, in a last-minute move, which Virgin has not been telling employees about, it has included a new clause in its Proposed Agreement.
Virgin’s new clause says the Airline will try to implement changes in the Proposed Agreement as soon as practicable with the desired outcome of three months from when the Fair Work Commission approves the Proposed Agreement. The Airline’s target is three months to implement the proposed working conditions, but it could take longer!
It means that the following may not be received until October at the earliest, and if the Airline does not meet its target, even longer…
- Reclassification to the new classification structure,
- Pay associated with the new classification, including back pay.
- New allowances,
- New “part-time” arrangement, and
- New break times.
If the Proposed Agreement is voted up and Virgin achieves its desired timeline, your new conditions would only come into effect in late October at best. If a worker resigns before it is implemented, it creates a significant legal question about how an employee would quickly and easily recover the lost money. If you know someone voting in favour of the Proposed Agreement for the pay increase, let them know there is no guaranteed date that they will receive it and that the Fair Work Commission will be granted a pay increase that will apply to Virgin workers if the vote no campaign is successful.
The Airline is rushing through this Agreement. Voting in favour of this Proposed Agreement provides no certainty on when the Airline’s offer will be implemented. Shockingly, the Airline is pushing through this non-union Agreement when it cannot deliver what it promised.
Thank you to all the new USU/ASU members and those who have been campaigning with posters, stickers on your phones, and drink bottles and talking to your colleagues about why voting no is essential. Now is a crucial time to be involved in the USU/ASU.
- Vote no because it is a dodgy offer.
- Vote no because Virgin Australia can’t even implement what it offers in a reasonable timeframe.
- Vote no because we need an USU/ASU-endorsed Agreement to be confident that terms will be enforced.
If you are not already a member, now is the time to join. You can join online here: https://www.usu.org.au/join.
For more information contact USU Organiser Peter Munford at pmunford@usu.org.au or 0417 420 924.
