February 27, 2025
Same Job Same Pay orders at Appin and Dendrobium mines have begun to transform employment in the Illawarra coal industry, where contracting out jobs has been rife.
On Tuesday, the Fair Work Commission issued a Regulated Labour Hire Arrangement order at Dendrobium mine, covering about 90 labour hire workers employed through Nexus and giving them a lift in pay of $15,000 to $20,000 a year.
Appin mine is creating 300 new direct fixed term jobs after the first order in the region was issued at the massive underground mine. Remaining labour hire workers will be consolidated under one contract.
Both mines are operated by GM3, a consortium that bought the mines from BHP spin-off South32 who aggressively exploited the labour hire loophole to outsource jobs and pit contractors against each other to cut wages.
The MEU is in discussions with GM3 and relevant labour hire companies to ensure a smooth transition to direct employment for the workforce at Appin, and will be advocating for as much of the existing labour hire workforce to be included as part of the intake.
Media coverage of the Appin jobs win.
South Western District President Bob Timbs said the announcement was a win for workers who will be directly employed by the mine.
“This is a great win for the Illawarra coal industry where the use of contractors to undercut wages and conditions has been out of control.
“About half of all production workers in our region have been employed through labour hire contract arrangements, rather than directly through the mine operator. It’s great to see that mix start to change.
“Significantly, this means that 300 more workers will be covered by the Appin Enterprise Agreement. We are pleased that more workers will receive the rate of pay set in the Agreement along with a range of conditions which have been hard fought for by members at Appin over the years.
“We are also hopeful that the two-year fixed term arrangement will provide a pathway to ongoing permanent jobs down the track.
“It is fantastic to see the new laws working as intended to lift pay rates in line with site Agreements and move away from using outsourced labour to cut wages.”
The Appin Lodge will support members through the upcoming application process for the new jobs.
Same Job Same Pay applications for Metropolitan and Tahmoor mines are still before the Fair Work Commission.
