Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Unions NT Secretary Erina Early says there’s been in principle agreement to EBAs for correctional officers but negotiations for firefighters are heating up

Transcript

Unions NT Secretary Erina Early says there’s been in principle agreement to EBAs for correctional officers but negotiations for firefighters are heating up · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: So we know that there has been some movement when
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: it comes to the public service pay negotiations with unions
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: for police and correctional officers giving in principal agreement to EBAs.
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: But it's a different story for firefighters with their negotiations
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: heating up from what we're told. Now, joining us on
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  Speaker 1: the line to tell us a little bit more is
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  Speaker 1: union's anti secretary Erina Early. Good morning to you.
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie, How are you not too bad?
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for your time this morning. Now, what's
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: the latest on negotiations for well, from your perspective, for
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  Speaker 1: the police and correction staff.
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: Okay, so with corrections, they have an in principal agreement
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  Speaker 2: and all be going out to formal vote on Monday,
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  Speaker 2: which is fantastic news for correctional officers because as you know,
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: they've been campaigning for a good couple of years. They
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: were the first to walk off and they've been standing
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: with all the other public sector workers as well. So
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  Speaker 2: finally the government listened and provide an enterprise agreement which
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: they're very very happy with.
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  Speaker 1: That is good to hear. So formal vote on Monday
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: for correctional staff.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, so it goes at the process starts Monday, Katie,
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  Speaker 2: and they've got a week then to have a look
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  Speaker 2: at the enterprise agreement and then you'll have the ballot.
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: So we've still got about a fortnight away before it's
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  Speaker 2: completely approved.
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  Speaker 1: So Erina, what were some of the sticking points and
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  Speaker 1: what sort of got the correctional officers or got you know,
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  Speaker 1: I got the union over the line in terms of
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  Speaker 1: getting it to that vote to the to the vote now.
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  Speaker 2: So as you know, Katie, So we had about the
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  Speaker 2: safe staffing levels with the officers to make sure that
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  Speaker 2: you know, they had minimum officers ratio inside the prison.
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  Speaker 2: That was a really big claim for them. So that
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  Speaker 2: was achieved. So we came to an agreement on that one.
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  Speaker 2: Also too about the wage increase. We wanted to do
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  Speaker 2: sure that corrections is you know, one of them the
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  Speaker 2: top bracket for the high paid officers in Australia because
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: they were heading down to the lowest. Now they're back
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: in the top three, which is fantastic. And also to
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: recognition for them in regards to workers conflict they're assaulted
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: or dealing with post traumatic stress, et cetera. Having that
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  Speaker 2: recognition that they will get ways top up and a crew,
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  Speaker 2: annual leave, et cetera. All right, the retention for Alice
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: Springs offices, and.
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  Speaker 1: So because that's been a big sticking point, hasn't it,
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  Speaker 1: you know, making sure that there's enough staff as well,
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  Speaker 1: and they've got those staffing levels that they need in
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  Speaker 1: order to feel safe and for prisoners to be safe too.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely absolutely came now, where are.
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  Speaker 1: Things that for firefighters because I understand, well, we've certainly
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: seen some writing on trucks as part of well the
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: protected industrial action or does that fall under the protected
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: industrial action?
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  Speaker 2: Yes, it does, say so. As you know, the fire
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  Speaker 2: even been in protected action for a little while as well.
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: But they can't walk off the job because they are
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  Speaker 2: emergency services. So they've been engaging, like wearing their colorful
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  Speaker 2: union shirt, but and other things where they can join rallies, etc.
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: And they're doing like emails, pictures on their emails, exchange
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: to the public. But the big one at the moment
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  Speaker 2: is writing non permanent stuff onto the trucks at the moment.
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  Speaker 1: And so I suppose for some people out there listening,
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  Speaker 1: they might be hearing that and thinking that that sounds
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  Speaker 1: like vandalism. Are there issues around that sort of being criminal?
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  Speaker 1: Behavior or are they actually allowed to do it.
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: They're actually allowed to do it. It's been approved by
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  Speaker 2: the Fair Work Commission. There's actually case law on it
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  Speaker 2: because you would have seen in Victorian Ambulance and a
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  Speaker 2: few of the other ambulances even in the NT and
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  Speaker 2: around the country they all do it as well, So
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  Speaker 2: there is actually case law to support it. Because it's
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  Speaker 2: non permanent, it comes off.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah right now, tell me as well, what's the sticking
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  Speaker 1: point at this point for the fireries in their negotiations.
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  Speaker 2: So with the fieries is recognition for them because as
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: you know, one in three firefighters will get cancer and
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  Speaker 2: they're getting no support at all from the fire service
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  Speaker 2: and no support from the government, and that recognition for them.
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  Speaker 2: As you know, workers comp you don't accrue and you'll leave,
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  Speaker 2: you get reduction of your wages after six months. You're
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  Speaker 2: not going to recover from cancer after six months. So
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  Speaker 2: that's a really big one to them. Also, their wages
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  Speaker 2: are fieries in the NT now are basically the second
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  Speaker 2: to lowest paid in Australia.
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  Speaker 1: And so so taking all of that into account, I mean,
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  Speaker 1: are things progressing as well for the firies? It doesn't
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  Speaker 1: sound as though they are comparatively to the other unions
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  Speaker 1: or to the other sorry, the other industry. Yeah.
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  Speaker 2: No, the Fieries well basically have been quite hostile and
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  Speaker 2: goo station Katie. As you're probably aware, I'm not sure
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  Speaker 2: if you heard. The other week is when they started
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  Speaker 2: riding on the trucks. Unfortunately, Commissioner Talker and chief fire
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  Speaker 2: Officer's brain called the police on their own firefighters to
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  Speaker 2: look into a criminal investigation in them to riding on
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  Speaker 2: the fire trucks.
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  Speaker 1: Right, But so from what you have said, it's actually
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  Speaker 1: it's not a criminal act based on you know, based
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  Speaker 1: on what case law and what has happened in other states.
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  Speaker 2: That's right, it's part of their protected action. So really
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  Speaker 2: it was a bully and intimidation tactic and it hasn't
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  Speaker 2: gone well.
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  Speaker 1: How look of the fire is concerned about the fact
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  Speaker 1: that that sort of all occurred.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, they were quite upset because, you know, getting police
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  Speaker 2: officers to come down one of their own. They work
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  Speaker 2: closely together, they're part of the try service. They're very
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  Speaker 2: upset that their own chief fire officer and the police
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  Speaker 2: commission has done this to them to try and scare
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  Speaker 2: them and threaten them to stop engaging in their protected
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: industrial action.
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  Speaker 1: Goodness, mate, it sounds like things are really quite hostile
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  Speaker 1: at this point in time. Erina, How is it going?
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  Speaker 1: How is going to get to the point where there
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  Speaker 1: is some kind of agreement that's able to be reached
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  Speaker 1: for the fieries.
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  Speaker 2: Well, we are hoping, Katie. We are still being positive
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  Speaker 2: that we can get a successful outcome. So we're actually
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  Speaker 2: a meeting today with my delegates to work out to
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: see if we can come to move forward in the
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: enterprise bargaining negotiations. So we're hoping that we can table
• 6:32
  Speaker 2: something back to the OCP and the government and say, look,
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  Speaker 2: you know, we want to move forward. Let's try and
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  Speaker 2: do this because, as you know, when you upset fiery,
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  Speaker 2: they may not walk off, but they hold grudges, they
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  Speaker 2: don't forget, and they're very creative with their actions.
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: Well, Erona, Early Union's nt secretary. I always appreciate your time.
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: Is there anything else I should be aware of quickly
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  Speaker 1: before I let you go?
• 6:57
  Speaker 2: Not yet, but I always have something for you, Kadie.
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: Talk you sounds good, Thank you. I appreciate your time
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: as always,