Public not at risk from bus maintenance lapse, Metro chairman says

Allowing a Metro bus serviced by unsupervised apprentices out on the road was “unacceptable” the public transport operator’s chairman said – but apparently public safety was not at risk. Here’s why.

Katie Cooper CEO Metro. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

Allowing a Metro bus serviced by unsupervised apprentices out on the road was “unacceptable” the public transport operator’s chairman said.

But government business estimates committee hearings in Hobart on Tuesday have been told public safety was not at risk.

Metro is currently in dispute with its mechanics amid negotiations for a new enterprise bargaining agreement and contractors are being used to supplement employed staff.

Metro chairman Tim Gardner was asked whether he was aware of work done by apprentices working for an external contractor which had not been checked.

“We had single situation identified by our employees and we took immediate action, as did the contractor providing those apprentices,” he said.

David O’Byrne MP is concerned about the bus cancellations. A Metro Bus at Eastlands Shopping Centre. Picture: Linda Higginson

“Every vehicle was checked. There were no safety issues. It was acknowledged and recognised that it actually was not appropriate and not good enough and we changed it so we dealt with it.

Mr Gardener later corrected an earlier answer, in which he said no bus had gone on the road without being properly checked.

“One did go on the road, it was subsequently reviewed and there were no safety issues. But I know that is unacceptable.

“It shouldn’t have happened. And we put in place controls to make sure that wouldn’t happen again.”

Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union State organiser Jacob Batt said his members did not believe the indident was a one-off.

“It is difficult to believe that after refusing to be open and transparent, declining to provide documentation, and after misleading the committee, that only one bus was put back onto the road,” he said.

“The only reason this serious safety issue occurred was because Metro budgeted hundreds of thousands of dollars to hire external mechanic contractors to undermine their own workforce in an industrial dispute.”

Member for Franklin David O’Byrne was unimpressed.

“After initially denying it, Metro made the shocking admission during the final seconds of the hearing that at least one bus was out on the road before this work was checked by a qualified tradesperson.

“This is a clear safety issue that is a direct result of this Government’s refusal to listen to its own mechanical workforce and instead rely on strikebreaking contractors.

“Whilst I am relieved that no major incident occurred, it is more out of luck than design.”

Questions about reliability after a recent temporary reduction in services dominated the hearing.

Mr Gardner said the company had put in place 15 to 20 different initiatives designed to help it retain staff, but was battling a tight labour market.

Minister Michael Ferguson. Hearing for Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd. GBE hearings at parliament. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

“Fundamentally, we still have a structural challenge of full employment and in the order of 125,000 transport drivers short nationally,” he said,

“There’s lots of attractors for people to go and do work where they’re not dealing with the challenges of working with the travelling public every day.

During the hearing, the government announced the pay rise being granted to bus drivers would be paid effective today.

“Rather than delaying payment to negotiate a new enterprise agreement, Metro has worked with the Rail, Tram and Bus Union to pay this increase now in recognition of cost of living pressures and the contribution of bus operators to the business, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Michael Ferguson said.

Mr Ferguson said in other service improvements, the powers of transit officers were being increased, they were being provided with body-worn cameras and $2m in increased funding would all the replacement of an ageing rostering system.