|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
|
||||||
|
||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
|
 About Us  About Unions NSWAbout UnionsWho's WhoInformation Centre What's Going On? Annual Reports    
|
|
|
Michael Gadiel, Deputy Assistant Secretary
Industrial
In 2003 Michael passed responsibility for SRA, Pacific National and the State Transit Authority to Deputy Assistant Secretary Alison Peters. Assistant Secretary Mark Lennon took up responsibility for the ARTC issue. Michael’s main focus for the year has been the energy industry, with award negotiations in both Delta Electricity and Transgrid. Michael was also involved in achieving a purchasing agreement with various local government councils. Michael was also fortunate enough to win one of two scholarships to participate in the Harvard Trade Union program, which he attended in the first two and a half months of 2003. EnergyMichael has now taken up full responsibility for Delta Electricity and TransGrid. He also temporarily took up responsibility for Eraring Energy and Macquarie Generation following the passing of Ernie Razborsek. This responsibility has now been passed to Northern Regional Industrial Officer Peter McPherson. Delta ElectricityIn late 2002 Michael took over industrial responsibility for Delta Electricity from Mark Lennon. Michael’s role in Delta Electricity consists of coordinating the union position in respect of disputes and the award negotiations. Award NegotiationsIn the lead up to the expiry of the Delta Award in March this year, Michael coordinated the union single bargaining unit, formulated the union log of claims, and managed the bargaining process until his departure for Harvard in January. The final outcome was for a two year award with increases of 4% per annum. 19 Day Month IssueDelta Electricity has been in dispute with the unions regarding their practice of shifting individuals and new employees onto a 19 day month, rather than the traditional nine day fortnight. The matter was arbitrated in the Industrial Relations Commission of NSW. The decision handed down by Deputy President Harrison ruled that although there was no scope under the Award for employees to work a 19 day month, there was provision to work a 20 day month. The unions have argued that Delta Electricity placed people on a 19 day month work pattern in breach of the Award and should therefore return them to the nine day fortnight. Management has since adopted the practice of placing new employees on a 20 day month. There have been a number of mass meetings endorsing industrial action, should Delta Electricity not return people to the nine day fortnight, and the parties are seeking the assistance of the Commission in determining an appropriate outcome. Michael has coordinated the union position throughout this process, which is ongoing. TransGridIn 2003 Michael has been responsible for Transgrid which involved convening the Level 1 Consultative Committee Meetings at the Labor Council and ensuring that agenda items are submitted and action items are appropriately followed up between meetings. It also involved the coordination of the award negotiations and fulfilling the Labor Council’s role in the Dispute Avoidance Procedure. Award NegotiationsWith the Award due to expire at the end of 2003, Michael convened the union single bargaining unit and coordinated the union position through the award discussions. This involved formulating a combined log of claims flowing from a series of mass meetings around the State, followed by the formal bargaining process. Final agreement was reached in late December. Michael attended mass meetings at each of the seven work locations state wide to explain the package. The recommended outcome was for a two year agreement providing a 5% increase in the first year, a 4.5% increase in the second year, and a bonus to all award employees of up to $1,500 based on performance against criteria set for TransGrid by the ACCC. This package received the support of over 90% of the membership and will be registered early in 2004. DisputesThere were two disputes in TransGrid that involved the Labor Council in 2003. One involved the Bare Hand Live Linesmen, and related to their skills development plan and the capacity for progression based on their proficiency in bare-hand, live line methods. Bans are currently in place and this dispute remains unresolved. The second dispute related to a TransGrid Board decision to relocate the Head Office from the Sydney CBD to Wallgrove. The new location is poorly serviced by public transport and would add an additional three hours travelling time for many employees. The unions believe that there has been a lack of genuine consultation regarding the move. Michael will continue to pursue these issues in 2004. Harvard Trade Union ProgramMichael was fortunate enough to have received one of two scholarships from the Harvard Trade Union Foundation to attend the Harvard Trade Union Program in Boston, USA in the early part of 2003. Michael was elected by the class to deliver the valedictory speech at the graduation ceremony at the conclusion of the program. TrainingMichael has continued to be active in the training area in 2003. Industry Skills ForumThe main challenge was establishing and coordinating appropriate union representation on the NSW Industry Skills Forum, which was set up following the withdrawal of much of the funding to NSW ITABs. Training AwardsMichael also organised the Labor Council’s sponsorship and involvement in the NSW Training Awards. The Labor Council sponsors an award for “Excellence in Trade Skills” which was presented by Gary Hingle, who served as the Labor Council’s representative on the judging panel. The Labor Council also sponsored NSW Adult Learners Week, supporting ongoing training in the workplace and in the community. Workplace Privacy CampaignMichael, assisted by Organiser Susan Sheather, has continued to work towards the establishment of general workplace privacy rights, in line with the recommendations of the NSW Law Reform Commission Report dating back to 2001. In pursuit of this, Michael co-ordinated the Labor Council’s launch of a workplace privacy campaign, entitled “Who’s Watching You at Work?” The campaign website called for members of the public that were aware of privacy abuses in their workplace to report them. Affiliates also engaged in a lobbying campaign involving a number of meetings with the Attorney General, the Honourable Bob Debus MP. The announcement by the Premier, Bob Carr at the NSW ALP State Conference that the Government would enact general workplace privacy legislation was a welcome victory in this long running campaign. Michael and Susan worked with affiliates to draft a submission to the NSW Government regarding the promised legislation. The submission calls for legislation along the lines of the Workplace Video Surveillance Act. The Workplace Video Surveillance Act provides for legitimate overt surveillance by employers, provided sufficient notice and consultation is provided to employees. The Act prohibits covert surveillance unless a magistrate’s warrant is obtained. The Labor Council believes that because of the rapid growth of new forms of surveillance technology, the new legislation should not be specific to any particular technology platform. Information TechnologyLaborNETIn 2003 Michael maintained his ongoing role managing LaborNET. He has been assisted significantly in this role by Glen Hugo and Susan Sheather. The Labor Council website has been set up so that every circular, submission, document and meeting is shown. Documents are deemed to be either public or private, with private material password protected. Every Labor Council affiliate has been provided a username and password. Major additions in 2003 included an upgrade of the Labor Council’s website to allow for attachments to circulars to be included on the website. A recent audit of the Labor Council websites found that Workers Online and the Labor Council websites were the most popular. State Wage CaseIn May, Michael made the Labor Council’s submission for the State Wage Case to the full bench of the Industrial Relations Commission of NSW in Newcastle. In a bid to gain a quick decision and have the wage increases flow to workers in NSW as quickly as possible, no changes to the existing wage fixation principles were sought. The Commission provided a prompt and favourable decision, flowing the National Wage Case decision to state awards with increases of $17 per week for award wages up to and including $731.80 per week, and $15 per week for award wages above $731.80 per week. Local Government Purchasing CampaignWorking with the USU and other local government unions, Michael has been coordinating discussions with various local government councils to establish an agreement regarding the procurement of goods and services similar to that achieved with the NSW State Government. The agreement establishes a partnership between the unions and the individual councils to protect quality local employment. It establishes a protocol to ensure that the council works with unions to ensure that contractors uphold their legal obligations regarding occupational health and safety, wage rates and workers compensation obligations. So far agreement has been reached with: Holroyd, Strathfield, Cessnock and Parramatta Councils, as well as with the Sydney Olympic Park Authority. This campaign will continue through 2004. Health/Mater HospitalMichael has been involved in the peak consultative discussions regarding the NSW Health Department Proposal to achieve upgrades to the facilities at the Mater Hospital in Newcastle by public/private partnership (PPP). The unions are opposed to the use of the PPP model in the provision of health services because of concerns that the standard of hospital services will decline as for-profit private providers move in to provide health services under a long term contract. Past experience with PPPs, such as Port Macquarie Hospital, has shown that they are not appropriate models for health services where maintaining a very high standard of service is paramount. Other ResponsibilitiesMichael has represented the Labor Council on the following Boards and Committees:
« Previous
| Highlights | Contents | Next »
| |
|
|
Home | Contact | Feedback | Sitemap | Privacy Statement |
|
© Unions NSW 2001. URL: http://council.labor.net.au/annual_reports/2003/2003-Michael.html
Unions NSW is proudly created, designed and programmed by |
 |
 |
  |
