Public Service Association secretary Nev Kitchen says Lands Titles Office staff shouldn’t sign ‘inferior’ deals to work for new private buyer

STAFF have been offered “inferior” contracts by new private operators of the Lands Titles Office and shouldn’t sign on for poorer job security and superannuation conditions, a major union says.

STAFF have been offered “inferior” contracts by new private operators of the Lands Titles Office and shouldn’t sign on for poorer job security and superannuation conditions, a major union says.

The Public Service Association says the $1.6 billion privatisation announced by Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis is raising major job threats for the office’s about 230 current employees.

Under the deal announced last month, Land Services SA will take over management of the service, and has the right to commercialise related data subject to State Government approvals.

PSA secretary Nev Kitchen told The Advertiser staff some staff had begun receiving offers to move from the public sector to the new provider on Friday, just as a conference was being conducted in the SA Employment Tribunal over concerns about the staff transition process.

“It was a bit of a slap in the face,” he said. “It is our understanding that those contracts are, at this stage, inferior to their existing conditions of employment in government.”

Mr Kitchin said key shortcomings were an offer of only two years’ job security, as opposed to ongoing public sector tenure, and a shift to commercial superannuation arrangements that did not maintain existing entitlements to salary sacrifice unlimited amounts into retirement savings.

He said there was also no start date for employment being offered, or point of contact for the union or workers to discuss further details with the future private LTO operator.

Mr Kitchin said the option of a formal arbitration process to win better conditions was on the table.

He feared 50 or fewer workers would be taken on by the new provider and many of them could be “left in limbo” after two years as their jobs are cut when the new business is established.

“In the interim, we are advising all of our members not to transition across, not to sign those contracts,” he said.

“I’m working on the basis that these people (the buyers) have shelled out all of this money believing that they have access to or they are going to develop IT systems which would be so good that they would effectively cull out two-thirds of the existing staff.”

A government spokesman said they were in constant discussions with the union and had been able to secure a “very good set of conditions” for employees making the transition.

“Discussions with staff and the PSA are ongoing and the government aims to achieve resolution of outstanding issues through voluntary conciliation and information provision rather than arbitration,” the spokesman said.

“As previously indicated would occur, the new service provider is making offers of employment to a significant number of current staff.

“This includes a commitment from the new service provider, Land Services SA, that it will make ongoing offers of employment which are the same, or substantially similar and no less favourable on an overall basis, to an employee’s current remuneration and conditions of employment.

“Offers began being made last week with the transfer of staff expected within a month.”

The government says staff are being offered 4.5 per cent salary increases over three years and the new employer is applying to have access to the existing government superannuation scheme.

The government also rejected PSA suggestions of disorganisation in the new private operator, saying it had the backing of “very reputable companies” including Macquarie Infrastructure.

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