Union threatens Magic Round action after pay talks break down
Queensland’s peak rail union has vowed to intensify its industrial campaign and flagged possible strike action over the May 15-17 Magic Round weekend after negotiations with the state government failed.
But the union said it had no plans to stop trains or shut down the rail network on the weekend when 150,000 NRL fans will descend on Suncorp Stadium and that its “low-level action” would only create “minor disruptions”.
Their threats came after representatives from seven unions negotiating new deals met their state-owned employer Queensland Rail at the Fair Work Commission on Monday afternoon.
Queensland Rail said its latest offer was fair, reasonable and in line with community expectations.
QR head of corporate affairs Nev Conway called on unions to reach a deal before the Magic Round, but reassured passengers that contingency plans would be in place if they did not.
“Magic Round services may be interrupted. We don’t want that, we want Magic Round to remain magical,” Conway said.
“The simple fact of the matter is that we are offering 12 extra services for up to 12,000 passengers so football fans can enjoy the weekend.
“We are doing all kinds of contingency planning and all of these will be considered as this situation.” [with the unions] amount.”
Rail, Tram and Bus Union Queensland branch secretary Peter Allen said QR’s proposals were “pathetic”.
“These are almost carbon copies of what was provided before… [and that] “It sets people’s conditions back,” he said.
This includes some people working longer hours, losing money due to reduced penalty rates and below-inflation wage increases, Allen said.
“This is nonsense,” he said. “This means we need to move beyond where we were before Easter.”
The breakdown of talks ahead of the Easter long weekend has disrupted planned maintenance on many train lines north and south of Brisbane’s CBD, leading to days of commuter chaos and long travel delays.
“Queensland Rail and the government need to know that we are serious and will apply pressure to get a reasonable outcome from such negotiations,” Allen said.
Queensland Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg said the offer put forward on Monday was generous and “reflects respect for taxpayers’ money”. He accused RTBU of making claims exceeding $1 billion.
Allen said the union’s demands were misrepresented by the government and Queensland Railways and were being used “to pressure us into accepting a substandard offer”.
