Land and Property Information - update on proposed privatisation - Public Service Association

Land and Property Information – update on proposed privatisation

Land and Property Information – update on proposed privatisation – 12 Nov 2015 (PDF version)

The PSA’s bulletin last month advised industrial and organising staff from the PSA had met with members at Queen’s Square to canvass ideas on how the union should be challenging the Government’s short-sighted, ideologically driven plans to privatise a number of LPI’s functions.

Members expressed willingness to take some form of industrial action to stop the Government’s privatisation plans and the PSA is working on an implementation plan in consultation with delegates.

The first action is a template letter for members to send to their local MPs. The letter highlights the need to maintain all functions of LPI within the public service and why MPs ought to oppose the privatisation of any of these functions.

The PSA’s position is that any private operator will be driven by a profit motive. This equates to LPI stakeholders, including information brokers, incurring higher fees for services. Land transactions and many associated services will also be impacted by higher fees.

It is clear that the citizens of NSW will be unduly financially burdened by a privatisation model.

It is also clear that under an outsourcing model, staff of LPI will only be valuable to the private operator until their functions are automated or outsourced. This means the job security of existing staff, and the knowledge resources the staff provide to LPI, will be lost or seriously jeopardised with private sector involvement.

The letter from members to MPs is the very first step in an overall union strategy to pressure NSW
decision-makers to back away from the Government’s grossly inequitable reform program.

Members will have received an invitation to participate in a brief survey which asks a series of questions about the type and form of industrial action they are willing to take. Including:

  • work bans
  • stop-work meetings
  • lunchtime rallies outside Parliament House
  • a broad-based advertising campaign opposing privatisation/educate the community on the functions of LPI and its significance and why it needs to stay in public hands
  • a community petition.

The LPI should remain wholly in public hands and the PSA will continue to build a strong, vocal and visible campaign which opposes its privatisation.

Particularly in regional areas, we intend to put pressure on local members of Parliament who are acutely aware of the potential impacts on job security.

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