May 11, 2017
Miners at the Oaky North Lodge will strike from 12-4pm today as part of industrial action protesting Glencore’s attempts to strip workers’ wages and conditions at work.
CFMEU Mining and Energy division District Vice President Chris Brodsky said workers would not allow the company to attack their entitlements and risk safety.
“Glencore is asking workers to sacrifice their pay and conditions while also stripping them of basic rights, such as certainty about rostered shifts and the right to be represented when a worker is stood down,” Mr Brodsky said.
“Taking workers’ pay, job security and shift certainty off them and creating an unsafe workplace is totally unacceptable and the union won’t stand for it.
Key issues where Glencore has taken an unreasonable position include:
- Removing employee’s right to workplace representation when stood down and for disputes; Insisting on being able to unilaterally change rosters with no arbitration
- Exclusion of clauses which provide safety for workers including working in the ‘muster area’.
- Insistence on a reduction in real wages Increasing costs for accommodation while cutting real pay
- Removal of arbitration in the Personal Leave clause.
- Inadequate natural disaster arrangements.
- Inadequate severance and retrenchment arrangements.
- Removing worker representation for disputes
“Through their unions, miners will demand a better deal from Glencore.
“Workers do not take industrial action lightly, but we have no other option given the company’s negotiating position would cut real wages, remove their rights at work and compromise safety.”