Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Unions NT Secretary Erina Early says public servants are striking again today, hoping to send a strong message that a 2 per cent pay rise is a slap in the face

Transcript

Unions NT Secretary Erina Early says public servants are striking again today, hoping to send a strong message that a 2 per cent pay rise is a slap in the face · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: As I said, public servants are taking industrial action today.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: They're taking to the streets to protest the wage offer
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: of two percent. Erina Early, the Secretary of Unions MT,
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: says that members feel like they're going around and around
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: on a roller coaster with the government hoping the workers
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: fall off and give up. Now, Erina joins me on
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: the line right now, Good morning to you, Erina, How
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: are you not too bad?
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: Now?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Who's striking today? Which different which different public service areas?
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: We've got a sue. So we've got the correctional officers
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: that they've got a twelve hour work stoppage.
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: You've got some of the teachers.
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: They're walking off for a four hour work stoppage. Today,
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: we've got power and water, they've got our four hour
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: work stoppage. Today. We've got nurses joining in, the fieries
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: are joining in, and aboriginal health practices.
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: How many do you reckon you've got down there at
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: the moment, Erina, Well.
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: We're all setting up in different areas, so we're we've
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: roughly got about fifty sixty so far. We've still got
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: another hour before we start for expecting about five to six.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Hundred between five and six hundred. That is a large number. Absolutely,
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: people are obviously fed up.
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: Yeah, they're really angry, Katy. They're a bit fed up
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: with how it's gone. They're over the moon that they
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: actually smashed the wage free but being offered two percent
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: wavering Tree, that's really erupted another fire within everyone.
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: Erin Or I got some messages yesterday on the text
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: sign people saying two percent that's more than what I
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: get as a private sector worker at this point in time. Oh.
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: Look, I can actually understand that a lot of our
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: union ventee union represent the private as well. But what
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: happens is the anti government is basically the leading employer.
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: They're the templates. That's what all privates would be striving
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: for for their wages and also their conditions of employment.
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: So higher public sector wages that tould bring up the
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: private sector as well. Erin, I know it.
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: The last day of action, you were pretty angry, Like, honestly,
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: I've never heard you so angry when you're up speaking.
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: What's the sentiment today and you know, are you feeling
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: the same, Oh?
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, absolutely, You're going to hear a lot more from
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: the workers today, Katie. They're going to be doing a
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: lot of the speeches because they want to put it
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: out to the media and to the territorians. But it's
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: not just angry union officials. It's actually the workers. They
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: are not happy that they may.
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: Deserve more than two percent.
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: Two percent is way below inflation. They're all hurting and
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: they just feel that this is a bit flap in
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: their face from files well.
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: And that's been the sentiment, hasn't it. I mean people
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: just want to be able, like from what I can gather,
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: and I did speak to Michelle Ais yesterday from the
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: education union. You know, you want to be at the
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: table with the government. You want there to be some
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: movement as well into maybe not even just the wage,
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: but some of the conditions. Is that correct?
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's not just all about wages. You've got conditions
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: for teachers.
• 3:10
  Speaker 3: You've got a lot of issues going in power and water.
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: We all know what's going on corrections. There are absolutely
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: crisis levels for short starting staffing etc. The fire service
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: is an absolute message in dire straits as well, So
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: it's not just about wages.
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: Well erinor early. I'll be really interested to see how
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: it all goes today. You know, what is your message
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: for the government this morning.
• 3:36
  Speaker 2: I think they need to stop and actually listen. The
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: wage freeze getting rid of that was fantastic, but two
• 3:41
  Speaker 2: percent is not going to be accepted by anyone. They
• 3:44
  Speaker 2: actually really need to put a real waves offer for
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: people to consider. It's time to listen to your territory
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: and people who vote erin early.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: The Secretary of Union's nt I appreciate your time as always,
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: let us know how it goes. If you get the chance,
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: send us a couple of photos so we can see
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: how how many people are down there.
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: We will definitely Katie for you. Thank you,