YEAR END

This is our last Bulletin for 2024. We did 48 this year. They are all on our web pages. Hopefully you find them informative and relevant as we give you a variety of reports. We wish you the compliments of the season and we will be back again in early January 2025.

CWU OFFICE CHRISTMAS BREAK CLOSURE

The CWU Office will be closed over the Christmas period from 12.00pm Fri - 20 Dec to 8.00am Thu Jan 2.
Our Union Officials can be contacted over this time if assistance is required.
Dan Dwyer 0428 942 878 ddwyer@cwu.asn.au
John Ellery 0419 823 580 jellery@cwu.asn.au
Ken Hardisty 0461 468 466 khardisty@cwu.asn.au

NBN SOD/EOD CASE

The case began with a directions hearing last week. We will file our statement of claim in mid January and NBN will file their response in mid February. The matter is set down for conciliation after those filings, on 31 March 2025. The Court will have a Compliance check on 17 March 2025.

TELSTRA OPTICAL FIBRE CASE

The case is nearing completion as we have agreed on the compensation to be paid to our member. This includes backpay for 5 years, adjustments to overtime and interest. There is a short hearing planned to determine the penalty that Telstra will pay.

NOKIA MONTHLY PAY CASE

The Court has directed Nokia to file a response to our claim and the matter is listed for a Compliance check on 3 February 2025.

TZV FEDERAL CT APPEAL MENTORING ALLOWANCE

TZV appealed the Court decision where we won a claim for the payment of the Mentoring Allowance to our members. Members will be entitled to payment for the past 6 years, if they have been mentoring, and have not been paid the allowance.
The Appeal is now listed in the Federal Court on 21 March 2025.

OPTUS SHIFT HANDOVER CASE

There was a further directions hearing last week. The matter is set for conciliation on 4 February 2025.

OPTUS EBA

Negotiations for a new Optus EBA continue with our Union presenting the CEPU Log. See the CEPU Optus Log of Claims.
Next year we will present our responses to the Optus claims, and Optus will respond to our log.

TELSTRA DRIVER SAFETY REALLY?

We received a lot of feedback, particularly about accuracy of the GPS. This was a surprise but it turned out to be true.
We have data now that shows the speed in the Telstra database does not match the signed speed limits. This means that Telstra may accuse you of speeding and sanctioning you, when in fact you were driving within the legal limits.
In one example where we have photographic evidence, the Telstra data shows one speed limit when moving in one direction, but shows a different speed limit when moving in the opposite direction. Both speeds were logged at the same spot, but in different directions.
Again the over zealous HR will blindly accept that their data is correct, leaving you the burden of proving that the Telstra data is false. We are awaiting a response to our request to meet Telstra over their edict. (See the previous 2 bulletins). If you have a similar situation, please let us know.

DRIVER SAFETY AGAIN

When is it safe to drive home after 10 hours or 11 hours since leaving home for work? Is one hour of driving a safe undertaking at the end of the day? Is it less safe on freeways or country roads? Can you be asked to do 12 hours a day, with substantial driving at the end of the day, every day? When should TA address this OHS issue?
We recently needed to address this situation and the matter was resolved. However we need clear guidelines.
I did a case in the AIRC many years ago and we were successful in reducing hours (on OHS grounds). Some believe that a 12 hour rule exists as a result of that case. But I believe that the issue is more complex than a simple 12 hour rule.
We have asked Telstra for their policy on this. More next year.

THE UNION MOVEMENT IS GROWING!

New data released from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that union membership has gone up by 12.3% in the past two years! ACTU Secretary Sally McManus has a message for everyone who is yet to join their union:
And even better: the data confirms that union members earn more.
Union members earn $1,600 per week compared to $1,350 for non-members (on a median basis).
Workers are joining because every day unions are standing up to protect workers' jobs, safety and rights.
Coming together as union members is our best defence against big business and Dutton's plans to take workers' rights and wages away.
Ask your colleagues, if not a member, to join you as a member

TZV EBA FACEBOOK POST

While the main and important problems have been cleared, one issue is still outstanding. It is a technical issue arising from the trainee salary and the better off overall test (BOOT). The FWC has asked for responses by 23 December.
This means that the EBA cannot be certified before 23 December at the earliest. In our view, the issue can be resolved and there is no threat to certification.
Please do not shoot the messenger!

TZV EBA FACEBOOK POST

In response to some comments - a brief explanation.
1. The FWC have no involvement with the EBA along the way. The first time that the FWC will see the EBA is after the ballot and after the employer has filed it.
2. The process is set out in the Fair Work Act and Regulations.
3. An agreement is "made" when more than 50% of those involved vote for it.
4. Once an agreement is "made", the employer must file it with the FWC along with a number of supporting documents, within 2 weeks.
5. The FWC will review the submission and check matters such as the BOOT test, that the ballot was valid, that you had access to the draft for at a least a week before the ballot, etc.
6. The BOOT test, "Better Off Overall Test" is one that compares your EBA conditions overall to ensure that the EBA provides better provisions compared to the relevant Award. Obvious matters would be salary and allowances.
7. If the FWC finds a concern with the test, it will give the parties an opportunity to explain the situation. In some cases a matter can be resolved with an undertaking from the employer. Sometimes the EBA is rejected by the FWC and it needs to be renegotiated or reprocessed.
8. The issue with our EBA and the BOOT test is caused by the fact that there is no trainee classification in the Award, and so the FWC is comparing the trainee salary with the higher CT salary. The trainee thus does not appear better off.
9. Negotiating an EBA is a very valuable experience but an unrewarding experience. Negotiators can expect a few cheap shots. Every EBA is a compromise. Not all claims can be achieved. We always want more!
10. Our negotiators had an incredibly difficult job given the State Government policy. Yet they achieved other increases beyond the headline pay rise.
10. Almost 90% of those who voted, voted for the Ops EBA.

WORKERS WIN $120 MILLION IN COMPENSATION AFTER DEFEATING QANTAS

The ACTU welcomes the establishment of a $120 million fund to compensate more than 1800 Qantas workers who were illegally sacked by the airline in 2020 the largest case of illegal terminations in Australian history.
In a historic win for union members, Qantas agreed to the Transport Workers Union's proposal for a $120 million compensation pool for economic and non-economic loss suffered by the former workers during the pandemic.
The agreement follows a four-year court battle after the Transport Workers Union's commencement of a case in the Federal Court in 2020 on behalf of the 1800 workers.
Both the Federal Court and the High Court found that Alan Joyce's and Qantas's decision to outsource and cut jobs breached the Fair Work Act and was motivated by a desire to avoid enterprise bargaining and protected industrial action.
The exploitation of loopholes to outsource jobs and suppress wages and conditions by corporate giants reinforces the need to protect the Albanese Government's vital industrial relations reforms.

ASBESTOS PRODUCT GUIDE

The Asbestos Product Guide, developed by the Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency (ASSEA), provides a visual reference for various types of products with asbestos containing material (ACM) that can still be found in Australia.
It provides images and descriptions of asbestos products, information on when and where they were used, as well as marketed brand and product names where known. Some images are sourced from manufacturer publications to aid recognition and provide provenance for some product. See the Asbestos Guide