$2.5m in back pay for Brisbane City Council bus drivers could stop February 20 strike

Just $50 a week in back pay per driver is all it will take to stop a Brisbane City Council bus strike that’s set to impact hundreds of trips on Thursday morning, a union leader says.

The bus union boss says Brisbane City Council is using back pay as a “pressure point’’ to force drivers to return to work before tomorrow’s strike from 4am-6am.

Rail Tram and Bus Union state secretary Tom Brown said more rolling stoppages from next week were likely unless there was a breakthrough, after a uniform ban and “work to rule’’ failed to end the deadlock.

Mr Brown said the union was happy to negotiate on the “middle ground’’ and was prepared to call off the strike as late as tonight, if council changed its position.

The union has significantly dropped its pay demand, initially 7 per cent a year for two years, and now was after only 4.35 per cent a year for two years, or an extra $60-$63 a week — whichever amount was greater.

Council’s counter offer was now very close, at 3.75 per cent and 3.25 per cent.

But Mr Brown said council’s unwillingness to include back pay was being used to try to force the union to cave in.

He claimed his members were owed a total of about $2.5m in back pay, or about $50 each per week since the former Enterprise Bargaining Agreement expired on October 7.

But a council spokeswoman said the correct amount was $15m and negotiations began in July, well before the previous EBA expired.

“If back pay was applied to EBA negotiations it would cost ratepayers more than $15 million ($947-$968 a year per driver),’’ she said.

“They’re using it as a pressure point. (Lord Mayor) Adrian Schrinner and (transport committee chair) Ryan Murphy got back pay when they got their last 4 per cent wage rise,’’ Mr Brown said.

“We’re not that far away on numbers but we want back pay.

“It’s standard practice, although not necessarily a right or entitlement, and I don’t think they’re (council) bargaining in good faith.’’

He also said council’s claim that drivers earned $76,000 to $150,000 a year was way off mark, saying he knew of no drivers earning near the upper end of that range.

“He’s (Mr Murphy) also got the $76,000 wrong. Council’s own website says the base rate of pay is $69,500, or $35 an hour,’’ he said.

Tom Brown. Picture: Liam Kidston

Mr Brown told radio 4BC on Wednesday that tomorrow’s strike was “the first shot across the bows’’ if talks remained deadlocked.

He told the radio station that drivers would strike “the same time next week’’ if the dispute was not resolved.

He said in the interview that the back pay totalled about $2.5m.

“Members regard that as their money. Fair go Adrian, fair go mate,’’ he said.

Tomorrow’s stoppage effectively would run from about 4.30am when the first buses usually hit the streets, with all routes into the CBD affected.

However, Mr Brown said about 20 per cent of council bus drivers were not union members.

He believed council would roster as many of them on in the early morning as possible.

Council employed about 2000 drivers, with 436 bus trips due to be affected tomorrow.

Bus passengers Hlynur Johannsson and Nina Halldorsdottir. They support the drivers despite the disruption a strike would cause. Picture David Clark

Mr Murphy has repeatedly said that drivers received a total of 30 per cent in pay rises since 2012 and pointed out that inflation was only 2.4 per cent.

He said the strike would hurt those who relied on buses.

“Regardless of union threats, we will continue to negotiate a fair and reasonable pay rise in good faith for our hardworking council staff,” he said.

“We have to make sure we strike a balance by delivering the services our city needs while keeping costs down for every Brisbane resident.

“Our bus drivers’ pay has increased by almost 30 per cent since 2012 and they are some of the best paid in the country.

Ryan Murphy. Picture: Richard Walker

“The longer this union dispute goes on, the longer the union will force drivers to wait for a fair and reasonable pay increase.

“Public transport exists to serve the community and it’s really disappointing the union is threatening to cause commuter chaos.

“Regardless of these threats to escalate industrial action, our council will continue to negotiate with all parties in good faith.’’

About 6000 other council workers represented by the CFMEU, The Services Union, Australian Workers’ Union and unions representing engineers and other council officers were also renegotiating their EBAs.

However, TSU members have not voted to strike, as yet.

Peak labour organisation Queensland Unions (formerly the Queensland Council of Unions) was approached for comment.

Originally published as $2.5m in back pay for Brisbane City Council bus drivers could stop February 20 strike