As members will know Qantas has taken the aggressive position of trying to cut 1 in 3 workers out of EBA12 by removing SP1 and SP2 from the agreement. This would see SP1s and SP2s put on individual contracts with no guaranteed pay rises, or any of the conditions contained in the ASU EBA.
The USU/ASU has filed a case in the Fair Work Commission seeking that Qantas be ordered to keep all employees covered by EBA11 covered by EBA12.
Our application is the next step in defending the rights and entitlements of USU/ASU members. We must fight to protect the entitlements of all workers because, as history demonstrates, Qantas will continuously attack working conditions – and if we let them get away with this, we know they won’t stop there. Within the last few years, the airline has:
- imposed wage freezes while giving the CEO a 15% pay rise,
- illegally sacked ramp workers,
- tried to terminate the cabin crew enterprise agreement to pressure them into agreeing to a new EA,
- underpaid over 600 USU/ASU EBA workers more than $7m because Qantas did not correctly give the workers their EA entitlements,
- sought to cut 1 in 3 workers off the next Enterprise Agreement.
Unfortunately, Qantas has adopted legal trickery in how they approach these negotiations. This is fundamentally unfair and a waste of time for employees and the USU/ASU.
Workers need the ability to collectively negotiate for better working conditions and access the low-cost Fair Work Commission if they have disputes over entitlements. Pushing workers onto individual contracts leads to poor working conditions. If Qantas wanted to pay workers more, we would welcome the airline abolishing its pay policy and coming to the table to offer more money.
Forward this email to your colleagues, and join the USU/ASU https://usu.org.au/join/. If you require any support or additional information, please contact your local USU/ASU delegates or USU/ASU organiser at:
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Branch |
Contact |
Mobile |
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NSW USU |
Thomas Russell |
0419 761 320 |
