Council workers to get 15 per cent pay rise after months of union negotiations

Unions and council representatives with the help of an “independent umpire” have agreed to a 15 per cent pay rise over three years for workers following months of negotiations.

Council CEO Margot Stork said the wage negotiations were ongoing.

After months of failed negotiations North Burnett Regional Council workers are set to benefit from a 15 per cent pay rise over three years.

Unions and North Burnett Regional Council representatives met in Brisbane with the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission on July 13 following months of failed enterprise bargaining agreement negotiations.

Services Union acting local government lead Tom Rivers said negotiations began late last year but they had reached an agreement on a number of wage and employment claims.

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It was understood the council requested the third party input from the commission to guide the negotiations to a close.

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Mr Rivers said following the discussion in Brisbane, workers were set to receive a five per cent increase each year for the next three years.

“(We) were struggling to get anything half decent in terms of wage increases,” he said.

“To get this outcome through conciliation has taken quite a few months, but we are happy with the outcome and if it needed an independent umpire so be it.”

Despite locking in the increase, Mr Rivers said North Burnett council workers were some of the lowest paid out of Central Queensland councils and the pay rise would struggle to cover increases to inflation.

“It brings the workers certainty over the next three years, and brings some stability to the area,” he said.

Mr Rivers said many of the workers had approached the Services Union, and other unions including the Australian Workers Union and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining And Energy Union due to a number of ongoing struggles within the council.

“Council were going through some financial difficulties, but on the other hand we have been highlighting to council for a long time that there is a lot of short staffing,” Mr Rivers said.

“(Our) members have been doing it tough for a number of years now, whether that's through Covid, natural disasters or just through a poorly run council.

“When they don’t fill these vacancies, the staff that work there, and have worked there for a long time have to pick up the slack.”

Council chief executive officer Margot Stork said the negotiation process was ongoing.

“The negotiation of NBRC Enterprise Bargaining is currently following a mandated process and NBRC will not be commenting until that process reaches a conclusion,” she said.

Originally published as Council workers to get 15 per cent pay rise after months of union negotiations