As you all know the Union and the various employee bargaining reps have had a number of meetings over the last few weeks to negotiate the terms of your new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA).
The EBA is the legally binding document that governs your terms and conditions of employment. If any of your workplace terms and conditions are not written into the EBA then they are not enforceable and management can change those conditions overnight without telling you.
The Union has now issued our log of claims for things we want to see in the new agreement. These claims came as a direct result of the answers you and your fellow employees provided in the recent Union survey in the MCC.
Union members met on Thursday 14 April and formally endorsed these claims to be placed on the company for the new agreement.
THE UNION’S CLAIMS:
- 3 year Agreement from 1 July, 2016
- Protection and maintenance of all current terms and conditions except where enhanced by the claims made in this document
- More transparent pay system to ensure:
- RACV regularly disclose and update all figures used to arrive at annual Mercer outcome
- RACV to guarantee payment of full mercer outcome each year
- Wage increases due in the final year of the EBA will not be withheld
- That the abovementioned detail in 3 a,b,c above be written into the new EBA
- Develop and agree new processes and measures that reduce stress around meeting KPIs to ensure employees have greater input into KPI setting, measurement and outcomes. Such agreed processes and measures must be incorporated into the new EBA.
- Greater certainty around the taking of Annual Leave
- Improved access for employees to take leave at a time that is more convenient to the individual employee’s circumstances
- Management must respond to all leave requests within 7 days
- That these new arrangements be written into the new EBA
- That improved arrangements be finalised around the taking of Personal Leave
- The new arrangements must clearly set out expectations and procedures of employees and management when Personal Leave is taken
- Must ensure that employees do not feel like their right to medical privacy has been invaded
- Must ensure that employees do not feel pressured for taking sick leave
- Must ensure employees do not feel guilty for taking sick leave upon their return to work
- That all new arrangements be written into the new EBA
- That a Domestic Violence Leave Clause be inserted into the new EBA.
- That improvements be made to the current access to accrued time in lieu and that such arrangements be written into the new EBA.
- That improvements be made to the operation and conduct of the current workplace Consultative Committee and that relevant Consultative Committee arrangements be written into the new EBA.
- That new agreed break arrangements are made to ensure employees have properly spaced breaks between commencement of work, first tea break, main meal break, second tea break and cessation of work.
- That new procedures be finalised for any changes to rosters and hours of work and that such new and agreed procedures be written into the new EBA.
- That a Union Rights clause be inserted into the new EBA.
- Plus any other matters that may arise during the life of these negotiations.
- The Union issued these claims to management at the EBA meeting last Thursday 28 April.
You’ll note that we have asked for the basis of these claims as negotiated to be written into the new agreement to provide certainty and legal protection for you and your fellow employees in the MCC.
Again I reiterate – if it’s not written in the agreement it’s not enforceable and RACV management can change it at the stroke of a pen. It is not good enough to have these things simply in RACV policy as RACV management can and do change RACV policy any time they like.
Negotiations will continue next Monday on these matters.
OTHER LOGS OF CLAIMS
Other non-union employee bargaining reps have also put some matters on the table that they want discussed.
RACV management also issued their log of claims a couple of weeks back. You’ll remember that document is the one that we have mentioned in our earlier emails. Management, amongst other things, propose a series of major changes to your terms and conditions. In simple terms just a few of the things they want to change are:
- REDUNDANCY:
RACV management want to take away the current redundancy package that is in your current EBA. Management are saying they want to simply have a “redundancy policy” rather than have the complete package in your EBA. Remember what we said about things that aren’t in the EBA? If it’s not in the legally binding EBA document it’s not enforceable and management can change it overnight. It is outrageous for management to suggest the terms of your redundancy package should change when at the same time they are talking about the possible closure of the Noble Park site.
- SICK LEAVE:
Currently you get 12 days sick leave per year. RACV propose to change the wording of your agreement to say that you will get “RACV Policy” or the NES.
What does that mean?
Well as we have said RACV policy can and does change overnight so the 12 days could at any time become 10 days.
What is the NES? This is the National Employment Standards which is the minimum standard that must be met by law. The NES minimum standard for sick leave is 10 days.
If you agreed to management’s log of claims then the 12 days a year you currently get for sick leave could very quickly be changed back to 10 days.
- ARBITRATION FOR DISPUTES:
RACV management want to withdraw your right to have any workplace dispute dealt with and decided by the independent umpire at the Fair Work Commission. That means any problem you may have in the workplace (eg. poor work performance appraisal, bad treatment from your manager, bullying, harassment etc) cannot be decided by the Commission. That is outrageous! Your current agreement gives you that right and that right should be protected.
- CHANGES TO PENALTY RATES:
Management propose a raft of changes to the way you receive penalty rates. Everything from downgrading your current penalty rates to removing some of them altogether.
The RACV management log of claims contains many more of these sort of changes. Most of these changes provide for reduced terms and conditions and large scale uncertainty for YOU and your fellow employees.
Stay tuned for more updates in the days ahead as we move further into these negotiations.
In the meantime help us make your conditions safer by encouraging your workmates to join the Union.
If you need any further information please see one of your workplace Union delegates:
Jenny Stewart, Rona Milne, Sue Heynders, Thomas O’Keefe, Kerry Forbes, Helen Verwey, Annie Keen, Rod Semple.
One strong united group of employees is the only way we are going to be able to protect your terms and conditions of employment.