NSW government reaches agreement with rail unions after bitter dispute

The NSW government has reached a wage agreement with the state’s rail unions, abruptly ending a bitter and protracted industrial dispute that has repeatedly crippled Sydney’s train network.

The government’s proposed enterprise agreement with the Combined Rail Unions, agreed to in the Fair Work Commission late on Friday, would deliver workers a 12 per cent pay rise over three years.

NSW Transport Minister John Graham.Credit: Oscar Colman

Transport Minister John Graham said the draft agreement was a “big step forward” that would enable Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink workers to focus on improving reliability on the network.

“This agreement will bring relief to the disruption from protected industrial action that a million daily rail commuters have been forced to endure while just trying to get to work and get around.”

The Labor government’s months-long dispute with the rail unions has triggered various forms of industrial action since last September, which ended up frustrating passengers and causing chaos on the rail network before Fair Work ordered a halt to industrial action in February.

The unions had been seeking a 32 per cent pay rise over four years, while the government opened with a 9.5 per cent rise over three years.

Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) NSW Secretary Toby Warnes said the dispute had been a “long and arduous battle”, but the draft agreement, struck after weeks of negotiations with the government, was a “very positive development that will no doubt come as welcome relief to commuters as well as rail workers”.

He said the proposal would go to members as soon as possible for review before a vote. If supported, the agreement would go to the commission for final approval.

“We’ve reached a point where we have an agreement that includes crucial safety features as well as fair and reasonable wages and other conditions.

“Our focus will now be on explaining the current version of the enterprise agreement to members and determining whether they are comfortable with it.”

Rail Tram and Bus Union state secretary Toby Warnes.Credit: Janie Barrett

In a message to members on Friday, the RTBU said one union, the Electrical Trades Union, was “unfortunately” expected to block the vote over one element of the agreement they did not support.

The government said in a statement the proposed agreement included several “technology-based solutions”, such as a new digital disruption management system to replace the current practice of using phone calls and paper-based instructions when the network was recovering from an incident.

It also included a “streamlined” process for consulting on new fleets and infrastructure projects.

Graham said on Friday evening the deal “resolves the wage dispute that brought Sydney to a halt”.

“It means if you’re trying to catch a train, you know that actually the workforce and the government are working together now to make sure that train’s more reliable,” Graham told 2GB radio.

Warnes said union members were now “looking forward to seeing the NSW government turn its focus to improving our transport system across the state”.

The agreement comes after a fraught fortnight on Sydney’s public transport. A pantograph broke on a suburban train near Strathfield, plunging almost all the network into chaos for 36 hours.

Earlier this week, a pantograph also failed on a Metro train, limiting services through peak hour on Monday.

On Thursday, city light rail services were suspended when a tram needed repairs outside the town hall.

Business Sydney executive director Paul Nicolaou – who has criticised the rail unions’ industrial action as “economic vandalism” – said Friday’s deal was “a win for passengers, workers, and the broader NSW business community”.

“The welcome in-principle settlement, which will be subject to a rank and file vote, will enable the government to focus explicitly on the operational issues that have disrupted rail and metro services in recent weeks,” he said.

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