DISPUTE : Certified Sick Leave

Your union is currently in dispute with State Transit over their continued practice of placing members who are in genuie need of sick leave and who have supplied doctors certificate on STA’s absent management program.

Your union believes this practice contravenes the 2012 bus operator award and we are currently persuing this matter through the dispute settlement process.

We will keep you informed with further developments as they arise.

Randwick driver raises reflection issue on new buses

When a reflection started appearing in the nearside mirror of the new 2400 series of Scandia’s and Volvo from a poorly placed new sticker on the buses at Randwick, a quick thinking member had the foresight to photograph the problem and report it.

The problem after investigation occurs when the sunlight hits the bus on the right had side causing a reflection off the sticker to occur in the nearside mirror.

STA placed the stickers there and when a complaint was put in said that no one was allowed to move the sticker but themselves.

As such, drivers began booking up the entire 2400 series at Randwick for maintenance. Read more »

Protections negotiated for members at Western Sydney Buses

The RTBU has been in negotiations to ensure a fair and reasonable outcome for members affected by the upcoming closure of Western Sydney Buses (WSB).

Neville Trinder

The closure of WSB will come as no shock to the approximately 50 bus operators affected by the changes who have always known STA’s control of the service was a temporary arrangement.

At a date yet to be announced in 2013, the T-Way and the entire Western Region (currently private operators) will be awarded to one successful tenderer. This has been the intention since the inception of the T-Way 8 years ago

Following negotiations with STA the RTBU has so far established an agreement to the below arrangements for affected members:

1. Re-deployment – All WSB employees have been guaranteed a job at State Transit Depots, with all entitlements (including sick leave) in tact.
2. Employees who do not take up the offer of re-deployment and have between 5 and 10 years service will be able to cash in their long service leave on a pro-rata basis on closure of WSB.
3. Employees who do not intend to take up the offer of re-deployment will have the option of accruing up to 40 days annual leave and ADO’s which can be paid out as a lump sum on closure of WSB.
4. From 30^th September, in recognition of the inevitable closure, all bus operator’s hourly rates will be increased by 40c per hour plus penalties.  Team Leaders (also our members) will be paid in line with STA Yard Supervisors (a rate superior to their current rate).
5. Employees who do not take up the offer of re-deployment will be issued a free family NSW Travel Pass covering a period in line with their (paid out) entitlements.
6. Re-deployed members will have their seniority recognised at State Transit. Read more »

Know your Rights: Career paths

With Brett Peters…

Vice President

21. Career paths

21.1 Where an employee covered under this Award takes up an Apprenticeship or Traineeship with State Transit, the employee will maintain their current rate of pay under this Award, until the pay rate in the new position has exceeded the afore-mentioned rate.

Unions in show of solidarity for worker safety

Click on the photo to check out more photos from the picket

The RTBU joined with other union officials and members to protest in the Sydney CBD last week to show their solidarity with CFMEU members picketing a work site with safety concerns in Victoria.

The CFMEU has been calling on Grocon for some time now to respect basic rights for workers such as the right to wear union stickers and clothing, the right to be represented by recognised safety and union reps and the right to talk to union organisers without interference.

Together we sent a strong message to bosses that there is no compromising ever on workers rights!

Waverley depot protests against harsh application of the discipline policy

Fed up with management’s lack of respect for workers and what they see as unreasonably tough reactions to minor offences, members at Waverley depot have voted unanimously to put discipline into dispute.

Members also voted for a petition to present to the depot manager expressing their anger and disappointment at this over-the-top regime.

The issues are many and varied, but include a driver who slept through the alarm and turned up to work late. The dirver was issued a final warning. The driver’s last ’late employed’ was 8 years ago!

The petition is popular, with drivers happy to vent their anger. Wendy Wirth, delegate for the depot, says the members are walking around with ‘smoke coming out of their ears’ after being subjected, or hearing of the treatment of colleagues, to this disrespectful manner management has taken this year.

This dispute is ongoing at present and members will have opportunity in the near future to assess management’s response and react accordingly.

Tempe dispute signals break through in unfair incident/collision policy

After having only one responsible accident in his entire career, a member at Tempe depot was placed on stage one of the incident/collision discipline policy.  When he notified local RTBU rep Ash Sarker of this outrageous situation Ash filed a dispute notice.

The dispute slowly made its way through the various stages of the dispute settlement procedure (DSP) and Union Official Gary Way ultimately elevated it to the General Manager, Human Resources STA.

Acting General Manager, Human Resources Martin Byatt considered the various aspects of the dispute and found in favour of our member. This lead to General Managern, Southern Region, Mark Peters reversing the decision to place our member on stage one, much to the relief of the driver and his Union rep.

In welcoming the Tempe decision Gary Way committed the Union to disputing all decisions that are triggered by not responsible accidents.

“A policy that means our drivers get penalised because other motorists crash into their bus is ridiculous and can not be justified”, said Mr Way.

All members are encouraged to notify their Union rep if they find themselves in these situations.

Know your Rights: Job Share

With Brett Peters…

Vice President

11.1 The parties agree to enable employees covered under this Award, to participate in job share arrangements where possible. The intention of the parties is to improve employee retention rates by providing more flexible patterns of work through job share arrangements, with particular emphasis on:

a) employees contemplating a reduction in working hours prior to retirement; and

b) employees needing to balance work commitments and family responsibilities.

11.2 Job share arrangements must be agreed to by the employees’ manager and documented in writing.

11.3 A job share arrangement will lapse in the event that either one of the participants returns to full time work, transfers to another line of work or position, or exits State Transit.

Notice to Members: standing time dispute

See below a Notice to Members regarding the most recent matter to be placed in dispute around standing time arrangements.

The RTBU will continue to fight against the constant short cuts that STA tries to take with drivers’ conditions.

Know your Rights: Acting out of Classification

With Brett Peters…

Vice President

22. Acting out of Classification

22.1 An employee engaged temporarily in a higher grade shall be paid the rate to which they would be entitled if they were appointed to that grade.

 22.2 The conditions applying to the classification in which an employee acts shall be their conditions whilst so acting.

22.3 An employee who acts in a higher-grade position for a continuous period of 124 working days shall be paid at the higher rate for any period of annual leave falling within the same twelve-month period.