Wage negotiations fail between Fraser Coast council and unions

Efforts to reach a new enterprise bargaining agreement between the Fraser Coast council and the seven unions representing its workforce have failed, with strike action now possible.

Fraser Coast Regional Council CEO Ken Diehm. Efforts to negotiate a new enterprise bargaining agreement between the Fraser Coast Regional Council and the seven unions representing its workers has failed.

Efforts to negotiate a new enterprise bargaining agreement between the Fraser Coast Regional Council and the seven unions representing its workers has failed.

A meeting was held late on Tuesday between the unions and the council in an effort to come to terms regarding an enterprise bargaining agreement before industrial action is taken.

Six unions have provided notice they may take protected industrial action if no agreement can be reached with the council, meaning strike action and other protected measures could begin in the coming days.

The council has been taking part in enterprise bargaining negotiations with seven unions representing their staff, with the previous agreement expiring on March 15, 2024.

Negotiations between the unions and council have been taking place since November, 2023.

The enterprise bargaining agreement will impact on all council staff, but legally the council can only negotiate with the unions.

Seven meetings have been held between the council and the unions to work out the current agreement, but no resolution could be reached before it expired.

With the expiry of the current agreement, the unions now have the opportunity to take protected industrial action.

Protected industrial action could include stopping work for up to eight hours, to go slow, to not processing paperwork, to not using technology, to not paying certain council employees, not issuing permits or certificates, not taking overtime, not taking collection of rates or other money and anything to do with parks and gardens.

“Our position is that we want to pay our workers a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work,” Fraser Coast chief executive officer Ken Diehm told the Chronicle this week.

“We respect the right of union members to take protected industrial action, that is their right by law.”

Fraser Coast council chief executive Ken Diehm. Efforts to negotiate a new enterprise bargaining agreement between the Fraser Coast Regional Council and the seven unions representing its workers has failed.

The current offer from the council is a 14 per cent pay increase for council workers over three years.

That will include six per cent in the first year, four per cent in the second year and four per cent in the third year in recognition of the cost of living increases impacting on the community.

In addition, to protect the lowest paid workers, the council has said the lowest increase they would receive would be a $75 a week increase in the first year, a $55 dollar a week increase in the second year and a $55 dollar a week increase in the third year.

The council’s on-call allowance would be increased from $50 to $70 and parental leave would be increased from four weeks to 12 weeks.

People in supervisory positions who are not currently receiving an allowance would also be compensated.

It is understood the unions did not have a combined position on what would be agreed to.

There are seven unions representing Fraser Coast council staff members.

One union was understood to have sought a 30 per cent increase in wages, equating to 10 per cent a year over three years, while other unions were content with 15 per cent.

Some unions had asked for a flat increase of $100 per week for all employees, while others wanted an increase of $1 per hour per employee plus percentage increases.

Increases in superannuation had also been requested.

Mr Diehm said the assistance of the Industrial Relations Commission to find a way forward.

“We really want to pay our workers their new conditions as soon as possible,” he said.

Possible strike action would impact on nearly every service provided by council, Mr Diehm said, but there were plans to minimise the disruption to the community.

“But there will be disruption,” he said.

Notwithstanding the unions’ decision, staff belonging to those unions can choose whether or not to participate in industrial action.

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Originally published as Wage negotiations fail between Fraser Coast council and unions