Did you know that the banana slug, which, contradictory to what its name suggests, is native to the conifer forests of northeastern America, has been clocked at travelling only 16cm in two hours… a top pace of two metres a day. And yet it is still moving at a faster pace than University of Newcastle Enterprise Bargaining!
This year bargaining representatives including your union, the CPSU NSW, have met on three occasions to negotiate your new Enterprise Agreement. Progress has been torturously slow and unfruitful.
Unions, including the CPSU NSW, have tabled numerous proposed reforms and clauses including, but not limited to, those with respect to ATSI employment, leave, and various other terms of employment. In turn the university has also foreshadowed proposed changes to the entire leave structure. None of these negotiations have landed on an agreed position at this point in time.
Instead, much of discussion has been had about how we should have discussions. All parties have, as of last week, now flagged their areas of concern by completing a ‘traffic light’ document, which will hopefully serve to narrow the areas of dispute.
The slow progress now has your union bargaining representatives harbouring concerns about the bona fides of the university wanting to reach an agreement at all this year. Unless real concrete commitments are secured in the next few weeks it is probable we will be coming to you to gauge support for industrial action to force the hand of management.
Against this backdrop is some economic data that should come of real concern to all members. The Australian Bureau of Statistics released its report on the Consumer Price Index a few weeks ago and revealed that inflation last year including the December quarter was 3.5 per cent.
The horror unfolding in Ukraine this week is only going to add to domestic inflationary pressures.
Consequently this will be front and centre in these negotiations when attentions turn to annual salary increases. Our absolute non-negotiable priority must be to ensure that your living standards do not deteriorate due to a wage increase that does not keep up with the spiralling cost of living.
These are tough economic times and as a result there has never been a more important time to stand together as a union and fight for what is fair. If you know a non-member in your workplace, please share this bulletin with them and encourage them to join the CPSU NSW HERE. Membership includes a suite of benefits such as journey insurance and ambulance cover that make it cost effective even in these circumstances.
Finally thanks to your magnificent delegates – Mark Smith, Shell Dillon and Zain Hamid – who without we simply could not have a functional voice. They represent you and sacrifice their time to make your workplace better for all, and are among our great union’s finest.
As an aside banana slugs are covered in a slime that acts as an anaesthetic on the tongues of predators. Some of that slime may be handy if we are to get bargaining moving productively in the next few months…
