He said Kinetic thanked “all bargaining representatives for progressing a new agreement,” with “negotiations continuing.” Kinetic’s South East Queensland general manager James Saltmer was equally pleased. TWU Queensland director of organising Jared Abbott boasted to the media of an “excellent pragmatic solution” to the dispute. The TWU’s no-strike pledge is an attempt to demobilise and shut down the discontent among bus workers while it continues backroom talks. There was the possibility of an improved pay offer for the second year, but that was not guaranteed. The driver said the union and Kinetic were drafting a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that retained the company’s rejected two-year enterprise agreement. Most people are not happy with $30 an hour.” I will be calling for a no vote on this deal. The TWU did not take it to their members. That increase would take drivers’ base rate to just $30 an hour, and cleaners/refuellers to just above $23 an hour-far below the soaring cost of living and even the $35 an hour that the TWU had originally promised to seek last year.Īn angry driver told the World Socialist Web Site: “This is a sellout. The TWU has released no detail about Thursday’s deal except that it includes an 8.2 percent wage rise for the current year, which Kinetic had already offered, and which workers have opposed as inadequate. The pact with Kinetic is based on the same proposed company enterprise agreement that the workers just voted to reject by 77 percent in a company ballot. It announced an “interim agreement” with Kinetic, keeping secret the fact that the deal includes a pledge to prevent further stoppages until mid-year. At the very last minute, without any consultation with the workers, the TWU cancelled a 24-hour strike that was due to go ahead yesterday. Kinetic workers at their last strike rally at the Gold Coast on January 31, 2023.
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