“A scorpion asks a frog to carry him over a river. The frog is afraid of being stung, but the scorpion argues that if it did so, both would sink and the scorpion would drown. The frog then agrees, but midway across the river the scorpion does indeed sting the frog, dooming them both. When asked why, the scorpion points out that this is its nature.”
Fable of the Scorpion and the Frog
Only two weeks ago we were celebrating that your protracted bargaining dispute with your employer, MTC, had finally come to an end.
You will recall that your Union, the CPSU NSW, had referred the matter to the Fair Work Commission for assistance to conciliate the dispute. At the second hearing on 27 June 2023 MTC agreed to the terms you sought namely:
On this basis, we dropped our claim for a new JWCC clause that would guarantee participation from CPSU NSW industrial staff, and indicated we would support the agreement if it were put to ballot of employees.
What has happened since is disappointing and calls to question the bona fides of the Company.
Despite NEVER raising it in negotiations over the last year, and despite it NOT being a condition of the two previous (failed) ballots when offered, and despite NOT mentioning it in the Fair Work Commission, MTC now want to change the eligibility for the sign-on bonus.
Now, beyond the eleventh hour but when an agreement had been essentially reached, MTC want the sign-on bonus to be payable only to permanent employees. Casuals would be eligible on a pro rata basis calculated by how much they have worked over the last twelve months.
This was never part of the deal. This is like buying a car and later being told the wheels are not included, despite the fact they were attached when you looked at it and test drove it.
You have bargained with MTC to date in mutual interest – not just for yourselves but trying to help it address its recruitment and retention challenges through competitive wages. Now they revert before the ink is even written let alone dried to their old profit-motivated ways.
The CPSU NSW today has rejected this new position and re-referred for the third time the matter to the Fair Work Commission. If the deal is off, then everything is back on the table.
Hopefully we can get the Commission’s help because they cannot help themselves from stinging you. We will keep members informed of developments.
