The Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) has blasted the Victorian government, which it says has supported Metro Trains – and not union workers – throughout the ongoing labour dispute which is set to result in a four hour strike this Friday.
RTBU Victoria secretary Luba Grigorovitch on Wednesday said a Fair Work Commission appeal by Metro Trains to have the strike suspended was supported by the government.
The Fair Work Commission turned down the appeal, and the strike is set to take place between 10am and 2pm on Friday. While this was a small victory for the RTBU, Grigorovitch was alarmed at what she claimed was unfair support for Metro Trains’ side of the dispute from the Andrews Government.
“The government has mismanaged this dispute from day one,” the union leader said.
“At every step of the way they have supported Metro’s decision to take a hard line in negotiatons and their choice of aggressive legal tactics over genuine negotiations.”
Metro Trains is the operator of Melbourne’s metropolitan train network.
Grigorovitch said MTR Corporation, the Hong Kong based business that serves as parent company for Metro Trains, has enough money to pay workers what they are asking for.
“Metro is part of a global conglomerate,” she said.
“They are big and rich enough to provide decent wages and conditions for public transport workers. No one, let alone a Labor government, should support Metro’s efforts to boost their profits at the expense of their employees.”
Grigorovitch believes the government has made this lengthy dispute harder than it needs to be.
“This dispute wouldn’t have got to this point if the government had not taken sides and supported Metro’s heavy-handed tactics,” she argued.
“It is now time they accepted the umpire’s decision and bargain in good faith. The commission has ruled that our action is lawful and the government and Metro should rule out further legal action and commit to serious negotiations.”
haha…the worm turns. Now we need VicGov to wake up to the machinations of the UFU
In the 1970’s the Rail department of Victoria felt like a part time job for me ..constant stoppages and strikes for years.
Almost ruined the rail business ….however eventually union activity abated and became more nuanced and less disruptive.
Seems like the old disputive tactics are back in vogue ..kick the customers in the guts in order to screw their employer…
Unions don’t go on strike for fun any more. They might have in the 1970s, but it’s certainly a last resort now. If they’re in a designated bargaining period, following the convoluted process to take legally protected industrial action, having appeals against the action upheld by the industrial umpire, and talking about conditions over a pay rise, they might have a point.
Who is the other party here? A foreign company with an allegedly toxic management culture. This strike is brought to you by the disfunction of negotiations between two parties, only one of whom is the union.