Sydney trains industrial action as it happened: NSW government to lodge bid to stop RTBU action; Haylen says impact to New Years Eve ‘intolerable’

We’re wrapping up this afternoon’s live coverage as Sydney nervously awaits rail disruptions after a decision by the Federal Court cleared the way for industrial action by the Rail, Tram & Bus Union (RTBU) to resume. Here’s a summary of what we know so far:

• The court decision effectively brought forward industrial action planned by the RTBU and five other unions, which was originally set to begin on December 28.
• The NSW Transport Minister Jo Haylen hit out at union demands, including 24-hour rostering, saying Sydney’s rail network is “not a toy train set”. She told media the government has lodged an application with the Fair Work Commission in a bid to stop the industrial action, which will be heard on Tuesday.
• The Rail Tram and Bus Union has so far refrained from enacting a ban on members performing any work if trains do not run 24 hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, which would result in a sudden shutdown of the rail system.
• Opposition Leader Mark Speakman called on the premier to “sit down with these bastards” and resolve the dispute, saying the RTBU had shown “complete contempt” for the public.
• Trains were unaffected by industrial action as of Thursday afternoon. Sydney Trains chief executive Matt Longland said the network is planning for a normal timetable on Friday.

Thank you for joining us this afternoon. We’ll keep you posted with updates about the industrial action over the coming days.

Transport NSW has issued an alert in anticipation of ongoing disruptions across Sydney and intercity train lines because of the industrial action.

In a blanket alert issued at 5.18pm, passengers were told to expect delays and cancellations, to allow extra travel time and consider using alternative transport.

But according to the TripView app, there are currently no major delays.

Frank Contri changed from rail to metro at Chatswood, where there are currently no delays. He said while he’d heard of potential disruptions, he hadn’t altered his travel plans.

The 42-year-old said he supports industrial action, especially demands for fair pay, as long as the union doesn’t overstep with its demands.

“So long as it’s fair, and both parties are fair to each other, and it’s not just the union holding Sydney to ransom, then it should be alright,” he said.

Throughout the heated negotiations over a new pay deal, the RTBU has left everyone scratching their heads about why they wanted 24-hour train services.

To put it simply, the ban on members performing any work unless trains run 24 hours a day on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday nights is simply a negotiating tactic, which is aimed at ramping up pressure on the government.

Last month the government averted a shutdown of the rail network after agreeing during crisis talks to run train services around the clock over a weekend in return for the union pausing work bans and entering two weeks of intense negotiations.

As Transport Minister Jo Haylen has put it, the consequences of 24-hour services is akin to a boa constrictor strangling the rail network. That’s because it significantly reduces the ability to carry out track and train maintenance, while also putting pressure on staff rostering because of the need for more crewing.

As the threat of industrial action from RTBU members looms, trains are running as normal at Sydenham station.

Commuters board a train at Sydenham station on Thursday afternoon. Credit: Kayla Olaya

The station, which accommodates the driverless metro and the action-impacted Sydney trains, is not currently experiencing delays.

For the moment, trains are passing through the Sydenham line on schedule.

Elsewhere, most trains are shown running on time on the NSW government’s TripView app.

As we reported earlier, RTBU state secretary Toby Warnes has told commuters to prepare for the worst after the union’s Federal Court victory.

In a post to social media following the decision this morning, Warnes told union members to stand by and prepare for updates about the industrial action.

“Fresh from the Federal Court, we’ve just won the case that the government brought against us,” he said.

“The government’s currently trying on a new legal trick to try and push things back, but we don’t think they’re going to be successful. We don’t think it will fly, but stay tuned for further updates,” he added.

As mentioned, one of the rail union’s actions is a ban on members performing any work unless trains run 24 hours on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

If it was implemented, it would bring the entire rail network to a standstill.

However, it is unclear whether the RTBU will enforce this critical ban.

Despite speaking to the RTBU secretary, Sydney Trains chief executive Matt Longland said he had yet to be told by the unions which bans they would implement.“We haven’t yet been advised in detail around which bans will be reapplied,” he said. “There’s more than 200 work bans in place.”

The other key ban involves a cumulative reduction each day in the number of kilometres train crew will work, which makes rostering staff challenging.

Transport Minister Jo Haylen said the bans would strangle the network, “squeezing the life out of it” and removing the ability to run train services.

As to what the action starting today means for travellers, the details are still not clear.

Haylen said she expected to “have a level of service available for passengers”, advising people to check travel apps and allow extra travel time.

“At this stage, we haven’t been notified by the union as to how they will implement those bans, but we will make sure that passengers are kept up to date,” she said.

Sydney Trains chief executive Matt Longland said at this stage the network is planning for a normal timetable on Friday.

“That’s what we have our staffing and our rostering organised and our timetable to operate,” he said.

“But I can’t at this stage commit to the level of service that will be provided, because we don’t yet have that detail.”

Transport Minister Jo Haylen has described union demands that have led to industrial action being brought forward to today, including 24-hour rostering, as “contradictory”.

“Now this is not a toy train set,” she said. “You can’t just move it around with a click of your fingers and expect that that’s going to serve us - the millions of people across Sydney that rely on it each and every day.”

“In fact, they have bans in place that prevent changing rosters, yet they are seemingly demanding that we change those rosters to provide 24-hour running, but they want that tonight, but not on New Year’s Eve.”

NSW Minister for Transport Jo Haylen speaking at the press conference in Sydney on Thursday.Credit: AAP

Haylen revealed the rail union and government remain a “long way apart” despite months of negotiations.

Union demands for a 32 per cent pay rise over four years is far removed from the government’s current three-year offer of 9.5 per cent plus super. The failure to break the impasse brought Sydney’s rail network to the precipice of a shutdown in late November before NSW Premier Chris Minns intervened. No deal was struck, however.

As the state government raced for legal remedy to prevent industrial action over New Years, Haylen warned there was still no compromise in the offing as both parties remained unwilling to meet the other’s demands.

“I want to be really honest with people, we are a long way apart. The treasurer and I met with rail union leaders late into the night. Last night, the government put very reasonable offers on the table,” she said.

As the spectre of rail chaos threatens New Year’s plans, the NSW government has flagged it will lodge a section 424 into the Fair Work Commission in a bid to prevent the union from undertaking industrial action.

What is a section 424? The Fair Work Act allows for the suspension or termination of protection industrial action under two main conditions: “to endanger the life, the personal safety or health, or the welfare, of the population or of part of it”; “to cause significant damage to the Australian economy or an important part of it”.

The second avenue is what the Minns government will be using. The problem, however, is providing the requisite evidence to convince the Commission the proposed industrial action will cause sufficient damage to reach the necessary threshold.

Then industrial relations minister Dominic Perrottet successfully sought and obtained an order to prevent similar industrial action in January 2018. In his decision, senior deputy president Jonathan Hamberger relied on evidence presented by the government regarding the threat to the welfare of commuters.