Border Force officers leave Darwin

AROUND 30 NT Border Force officers have asked to leave the Territory because cuts to their salary mean they can’t afford to live here anymore, according to their union

AROUND 30 NT Border Force officers have asked to leave the Territory because cuts to their salary mean they can’t afford to live here anymore, according to their union.

Community and Public Sector Union Regional Secretary Kay Densley said the Federal Government had slashed the take-home pay of Darwin based Border Force officers through cuts to remote location allowances, meaning a typical worker based at Darwin Airport would earn $5,000 a year less than they did in 2013.

But a spokesman for Australian Borderforce denied people were begging to leave the NT.

“There have not been mass requests for transfers from Australian Border Force officers (ABF) in the Northern Territory,” the spokesman said.

The spokesman did not say how many transfer requests there had been.

“Eligibility for remote locality conditions under the Workplace Determination are based on the method for determining remoteness set in the modern Australian Public Service Award 2015,” he said.

“Some rates of allowance have reduced.”

Ms Densley said attracting and retaining experienced, qualified Border Force officers was critical to ensure a high standard for Darwin operations, including handling international passengers, freight and operating marine unit boats.

“Cutting the take-home pay of Border Force officers living in Darwin by thousands of dollars a year isn’t just an attack on them and their families,” she said.

“Money these officers don’t get paid is money they can’t spend in the Territory, and undermining these workers also undermines their work securing Australia’s border.”

“Around 30 NT-based staff have already applied for compassionate transfers, saying they can’t afford to stay in Darwin when they’re getting paid so much less than they were six years ago.”

Others are looking for alternative work to see if they can stay in Territory, Ms Densley said.

Border Force said it was considering other transitional measures to maintain attractiveness of regional placements, retain talent and secure new talent.

“For locations that do not meet contemporary standards of remoteness, allowances provided to employees in those locations at commencement of the WD will phase out progressively over two years,” the spokesman said.