Working to Live - Bulletin 11

This message came loud and clear from Qantas management to your ASU National Negotiating Team at our meeting on 15 September 2004.

Your team argued vigorously about the objective facts which we say justify a higher wage rise like:

• The 6% rise to Virgin Blue employees
• The 66% pay rise Qantas Board members want
• The average EBA in Australia is over 3%
• Geoff Dixon's base rate pay rise is 25%
• Travel professionals wages are skyrocketing
• Qantas is the most successful airline in the world
• Call Centre staff wages are increasing everywhere
• Qantas Executives are receiving base rate pay rises greater than 3%
• Qantas staff productivity is at an all time high

Unfortunately nothing washed - the fact is the Executives and Board, who are giving themselves pay rises well in excess of 3% don't want ordinary hard working employees to get a higher pay rise.

It's an insult

To say the least your National Negotiating Team believes this is an insult to staff. Coupled with the persistent refusal to give job security commitments the hollow company repose about the $1000 bonus being compensation for years of low pay rises, a wage freeze and redundancies is hard to swallow, particularly when the company seems to be insisting on tradeoffs for their 3% pay rise.

The company tradeoffs

As members know we held meetings around Australia to discuss the company proposals to change our casuals, fixed term, part time, buyout of 20 days and Perth 12 hour clause. We have told the company that we are not prepared to weaken our existing terms and conditions. The message from members is that the changes to casuals, fixed term and part time will effect our job security and no one wants that.

On the RDOs, we have told the company we would be prepared to consider a one off voluntary buyout of RDOs during the EBA as occurred in EBA 5. They are considering this. On Perth Airport, this clause was decided by the Commission and our research suggests it works at Perth because of the shift patterns which include 12 hour shifts. Perth staff want to keep the 12 hour break and we must support them.

Qantas tables extra claims

Qantas tabled two extra claims at our meeting.

Part Time Clause - The company wants us to consider a further change to the part time clause to allow overtime to be paid for part timers for time worked in excess of 7.6 hours per day (or 8 in the case of rostered hours), see EBA IV clause
4(f).

Fixed Term Clause - Qantas wants to add "parental leave" as a further exception to the maximum engagement of fixed term employees which is capped at 52 weeks. Qantas is hinting that they "may" increase unpaid parental leave to 2 years as part of the work life initiatives announced with the profit - this is no guarantee of course!

What of the work life initiatives?

Your Negotiating Team are keen to get the initiatives in our EBA not in policy, because as we all know, policy can be changed with a stroke of the pen - but the EBA needs our agreement.

On the other issues we tabled like buying annual leave, leave without pay etc, apparently Qantas has a taskforce looking at these issues. All the business heads have to examine what they can do - report back to Geoff Dixon and some consultants.

Then apparently in November there will be a meeting with unions (no date is set) and some decisions will be made in December 2004. From our standpoint this seems a long drawn out process and it is our aim to have our measures in the EBA not subject to the vagueness of some consultant's whim...either the company is committed to giving work life balance options or they are not...it shouldn't take months to decide.

Where to next?

Our next meeting is on 6 October 2004. In the meantime remember to vote on the AGM resolutions for the meeting on 21 October and proxy your ASU reps. We need to send a clear message about what we think.

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