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V/Line and Yarra Trams staff to strike again on regional rail lines

Commuters are in for more pain after the RTBU announced more strike action on V/Line trains and Yarra Trams services. Here’s when you can expect it to happen.

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Tram drivers will join V/Line staff in a new round of strike action, with the operator committing to another two stoppages this month.

Staff on the light rail network will walk off the job between 10am and 2pm on February 17 and February 20.

It comes as the Rail, Tram and Bus Union continue to pressure Yarra Trams to back down from its push for more part-time staff in a new enterprise agreement.

The company has argued it wants more flexible work arrangements to hire more diverse staff but the union believes the move would casualise the workforce and remove benefits.

RTBU state secretary Luba Grigorovitch said the union wanted more detail on the impact of part-time rostering.

“Based on calculations from the minimal information Yarra Trams has provided, the RTBU believes that if Yarra Trams implemented its part-time proposal, full-time drivers’ take-home pay could be slashed by up to $9.69 million per year!” she said.

Staff on Melbourne’s tram network will walk off the job again.
Staff on Melbourne’s tram network will walk off the job again.

“That is, on average, over $7,000 out of the pocket of each full-time driver every year!”

It comes as regional rail commuters will be hit by delays and cancellations as the state’s public transport union launches a fresh round of strikes on V/Line services.

No trains will run on the Bendigo, Echuca and Swan Hill lines on February 7 as part of the action.

Another round of disruptions will hit when operational staff on the Albury, Seymour and Shepparton lines stop work for 24 hours on February 13 and the Ballarat, Maryborough and Ararat lines on February 18.

One more 24-hour stoppage is scheduled on the Traralgon and Bairnsdale lines on February 19.

It comes after Public Transport Minister Melissa Horne last week offered a mediator to help resolve the dispute between the RTBU and V/Line.

The union has refused for now as it continues to call for mediators to also be appointed to negotiations with Metro and Yarra Trams.

People boarding V/Line trains at Geelong Station. Picture: Peter Ristevski
People boarding V/Line trains at Geelong Station. Picture: Peter Ristevski

Ms Grigorovitch said staff productivity improvements had gone unappreciated on the regional network.

“What has languished has been government investment in regional commuters,” she said.

“They actually need to invest in staff and rolling stock to keep pace with the boom in demand.

“Our members take great pride in their work, getting people from A to B, but when government and the company team up to attack their ability to deliver that service they take it very personally.”

Delays and cancellations are also expected to hit services from February 12 when shunters, who manage how carriages and trains are connected, stop over four hours from 5.30am.

Other parts of the V/Line network were hit with strikes during the Australian Open, with Yarra Trams staff also launching four-hour stoppages.

Ms Grigorovitch repeated her call for Ms Horne to become involved in the dispute.

“We are fed up with the excuses and glossy pamphlets, workers and the public need comprehensive solutions now,” she said.

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A government spokeswoman encouraged the union to resolve the dispute.

“The union needs to explain why it won’t lift this action when the government has agreed to its request to appoint an independent mediator to help resolve the dispute with V/Line” she said.

“If they aren’t going to call of the action and get back around the table, the Government has asked V/Line to pursue this matter through Fair Work.”

kieran.rooney@news.com.au

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Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/vline-staff-to-strike-again-on-regional-rail-lines/news-story/5abbab45e1d983efa69cce1c906eb757