Enterprise Bargaining Update – TAFE NSW Administrative, Support & Related Employees
22 January 2016
Your É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) Bargaining Team met with TAFE NSW on 13 January to discuss the next Enterprise Agreement regulating your pay and conditions.
The meeting discussed:
Centralised Classification System (Work Level Standards)
- streamlining allowances
- dispute resolution and consultation
- part-year employment
- enterprise bargaining.
The developing of new Work Level Standards for a centralised Classification System applying to all TAFE Support Staff is still underway with the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) seeking a large number of major amendments to a draft from TAFE NSW. The key principle for the union is to ensure a fair classification is introduced, and that current TAFE employees are not disadvantaged. Members will be consulted over the proposal before the final version is agreed.
Allowances
In response to the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) claims, TAFE NSW has agreed to consolidate a number of allowances, rather than maintain their claim to remove them completely without compensation.
This is excellent news and the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) will continue to advocate for members to not lose allowances. Please keep an eye out for a survey coming to you in the next few weeks. It will ask about how you use allowances and which ones are important for you.
Dispute resolution and consultation
Your union continues to fight for decent conditions for TAFE support staff. This ensures your employment conditions can be easily enforced, through affordable means. Genuine consultation should meet the same standards the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) won for NSW public servants and the union will continue to fight to ensure members get a genuine voice at work.
See the win the É«ÀÇÉçÇøhad on consultation over the NSW Government
Permanent part-year employment
The É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) is proposing current temporary part-year employees be offered conversion to ongoing part-year employment. TAFE NSW has responded well to this proposal so far. The primary issue for TAFE NSW is the ongoing creation of new permanent part-year employment positions.
The É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) has investigated the potential use for permanent part-year employment in relation to the Modern Award, which underpins the Enterprise Agreement. The Modern Award sets the minimum benchmark and any Agreement must be better off for every category of employee. The Award does not have permanent part-year employment available as a category and the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) has not found any Agreements that allow new positions to be created as permanent part-year.
There is the ability however to provide for conversion of staff in insecure forms of employment into permanent part-year, predominantly from casual employment. Watch out for a survey coming out in the next few weeks about PPY employment and how this proposal could impact you.
The É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) maintains its concern this will be abused with an ever-increasing percentage of positions becoming permanent part-year. The É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) is looking for very strong protections against TAFE NSW expanding the use of PPY well beyond what is actually needed. The É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) will report to members on any updates in this area.
In order for your union to continue to strongly defend your conditions of employment, it is vital you encourage your colleagues who may not yet be a member of the É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) to join.
Not a member? Join the É«ÀÇÉçÇøtoday to fight for improvements instead of slashed wages and conditions at www.psa.asn.au
Members should pass this message on to interested potential É«ÀÇÉçÇømembers.
Your É«ÀÇÉçÇø(CPSU) Bargaining Representatives
É«ÀÇÉçÇøDelegates
Leon Parissi                       Margaret Bamford
Christopher Hobbins       Glenda Pryor
Andrew Ruddell                Brad Cowie
Brook Down                      Gary Hodgkinson
É«ÀÇÉçÇøStaff undertaking Bargaining
Phoebe Dangerfield       Blake Stephens