New InterCity Fleet – August Depot Tour

As members would be aware, the Locomotive Division recently undertook a depot wide tour during August to the regions affected by the introduction of the New InterCity Fleet and its dangerous mode of operation.

The principle of the tour was to inform the membership of recent events and more importantly to gather the sentiments of the crew and collect the state-wide signatory endorsement to have your Union reiterate to NSW Trains that their operational and business model will not be tolerated.

This grass-roots and hearts and minds campaign, a ‘boots on the ground’ initiative, was orchestrated to empower you the membership to tell the boss in no uncertain terms that their cost cutting business model is an appalling example of negotiations held in bad-faith and is unacceptable.

This dictatorship is designed to negate your rights to a fair and equitable outcome under the banner of the Enterprise Agreement and its protections.

Across the state you the membership turned up en masse and to put the blowtorch to NSW Trains bosses to justifiably expose their insidious scheme to:

• Overload our train drivers with an unattainable workload;
• Introduce inferior technology that is not ‘as safe, or safer’ than current;
• Provide a cut and paste ‘NIF safety paper’ written on the flight over to Oz;
• Dangerously expose you to worse case scenarios out in the field;
• Offer drivers a paltry wage offer that does not reflect your value; and,
• Introduce by stealth a transitional operational mode on the path to ‘driver only operations’.

InterCity Driver members deserve better. Here we are at the game changer and during the tour you have clearly informed us that enough is enough.

Despite NSW Trains efforts to undermine the true value of the Drivers role, duties and responsibilities with a poultry 4% offer, the Division provided an initial base line on pay months ago depending on the final operating model and any additional duties taken on by members. The baseline remuneration and corresponding driver tasks are in line with the 1992 CountryLink Operating model.

It has also been made clear to NSW Trains on numerous occasions that should their proposed operating model, which includes DOO non-revenue services be introduced, the RTBU wage claim would be no less than the applicable industry standard for DOO and be contingent on NSW Trains removing the In-cab spy camera.

Since when has the boss dictated the terms of engagement to the membership of the Locomotive Division? Don’t be a footnote in history, take charge of your own future and write a chapter in bold that will leave future members in awe and our past members toasting your actions!!

The decisions you make today will not only affect your tomorrow, but will determine your future.