National Rail Safety Law information forums: register now

Jul 12, 2011Update

The proposed new National Rail Safety Law may have a big impact on your hours of work and working time arrangements, particularly around fatigue rostering issues, currently contained in the RTBU’s Industrial Agreements and the underpinning Working Hours as contained in the NSW Rail Safety Act – Schedule 2. It is proposed to delete the schedule and allow employers to apply to the regulator for new working time arrangements.

The draft National Rail Safety Law and Regulations and Regulatory Impact Statement will be released publicly on July 18 on the National Transport Commission website.

To go with this the NTC and the National Rail Safety Regulator Project Office are conducting a series of information forums explaining the key aspects of the proposed law and Regulatory Impact Statement.

The forums will also explain how the Adelaide-based National Rail Safety Regulator will operate and, crucially how it will impact on ITSR’s operations in NSW. It will provide members with an opportunity to ask questions and seek further information.

This is a massive regulatory change from a state-based to a national system and the union has many reservations that our current strong NSW rail safety laws forged as a result of two Special Commissions of Inquiry, which have set a benchmark for rail safety over the last eight years, will be diluted.

The NTC has emphasised the importance of the public consultation process and in particular the feedback from rail safety workers, so it’s extremely important that members attend the forums if they can to find out exactly how the laws will affect them and to put forward their case against any weakening of NSW safety protections.

The NTC is on a tight schedule to push through the laws, but these forums and your feedback are essential to ensure that any changes that may negatively affect NSW members are not simply steamrolled through by the NTC and state and federal governments.

The RTBU urges members to attend. Please register via the links below, then email the Locomotive Division so we can coordinate numbers on the day and provide more information to members about issues that will be raised at the forums: nswloco@rtbu-nsw.asn.au.

Sydney Info Session #1:

Thursday 04 August

9am – 12:35pm

Hilton Sydney

488 George Street, Sydney, NSW 2000

Sydney Info Session #2:

Thursday 04 August 2011

6pm – 9:35pm

Hilton Sydney

488 George Street, Sydney, NSW, 2000

Newcastle

Friday 05 August 2011