17 March 2016 Legislative Council, NSW Parliament Adjournment Speech - Essential Energy Enterprise Agreement The Hon. ADAM SEARLE (Leader of the Opposition) [4.23 p.m.]: On or about 7 March this year major New South Wales State-owned energy corporation Essential Energy filed an application in the Fair Work Commission—the Commonwealth industrial tribunal—to cancel the enterprise agreement applying to the company and its workforce. The agreement had reached what is described as its "nominal expiry date" on 30 June 2015. Under the Fair Work Act agreements are made for a period of time. When that time elapses, the agreement continues unless one of the parties moves to cancel it. That step is very rarely taken. But taken it was in New South Wales—by a government-owned employer no less, and not just any employer. Essential Energy is one of the largest employers in regional and rural New South Wales. It has a workforce of nearly 4,000 people. Those wages are vital to not only those individuals and their families but also the economies of towns, villages and regions across this State serviced by Essential. This company has already cut 350 jobs through the offering of voluntary redundancies, and has flagged it wishes to cut a further 800 jobs by June 2018. I understand that since the nominal expiry of the enterprise agreement Essential has been in discussion with its workforce and their industrial representatives the Electrical Trades Union, United Services Union and Professionals Australia, formerly known as APESMA. I do not believe that those negotiations had run their course before Essential took this drastic step. I have formed that view because Essential has informed its workforce that, despite taking this drastic step, it will continue to negotiate on a new enterprise agreement. If the application to terminate the agreement is successful the workforce would be covered by the Electrical Power Industry Award 2010 until or unless a new enterprise agreement is agreed upon. That award has terms and conditions significantly below those contained in the present agreement. It should not be surprising because the Federal industrial system is based on minimum awards and people then bargain for new agreements to improve upon those situations. The outcome means hard-won conditions and pay that were bargained for and often paid for by the workforce through workplace changes over the years can simply be taken away if the agreement ends. I note that Essential has made an "above award offer", guaranteeing existing weekly base rates of pay, redundancy arrangements above the National Employment Standards and the continuation of sick leave arrangements. To secure those the workforce would have to agree to certain patterns of working hours, shift work and on-call arrangements that are presently in place at Essential. However, that situation will only last for six months from the termination of the enterprise agreement, if the Fair Work Commission agrees to it, or when a new enterprise agreement is reached—whichever is the sooner. One of the conditions that would be immediately lost to workers is their protection from forcible redundancy. Relieved of this, Essential could proceed immediately to cut the 800 jobs it wants to get rid of. That would have a significant social and economic impact across the regions of this State serviced by Essential. Where is the party that claims to be the voice of rural and regional New South Wales, The Nationals? So far, they have taken absolutely no action to protect the people who work for Essential from the looming loss of their livelihoods. The Nationals would understand that new jobs are not that easy to come by in the country, yet they are simply nowhere to be seen. Job losses should be a last, reluctant resort for an employer—particularly a government-owned one—and not a first, easy port of call. That is especially so when negotiations remain on foot. I note that on Monday 21 March there will be a first directions hearing of Essential Energy's application to terminate the enterprise agreements before Vice-President Hatcher of the Fair Work Commission. That will be followed by a process of discussion and negotiation. If that does not resolve the matter there will have to be evidence and legal argument prepared by all parties, no doubt at great cost in respect of both money and time—to say nothing of the difficulties caused for the workforce by the continuing uncertainty this process will cause. While Essential Energy is taking a course of action that is open to it under the law, it will have devastating consequences for the individuals and families directly affected..... FULL TRANSCRIPT AT https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/hansart.nsf/V3Key/LC20160317040?open&refNavID;=HA8_1

• published: 21 Mar 2016
• views: 2