RMS Unions Urgent Award Update – Offer Made (PDF version)

Union Members Successful in Enhancing Rights, Pay and Conditions

After a week of emergency negotiations between RMS unions and management, your unions this morning have secured an offer for a new award for RMS Salaried Staff.

The one year Award includes many wins for salaried employees including:

• A 2.5% pay increase from 1 July 2016 (to be back-paid);

• Enhancements to the Flexible Working Hours scheme that include no fixed core hours (replaced with a floating core), a 7am – 7pm bandwidth and protections for:

o   Paid overtime

o   Shift penalties

o   On call/call out payments

• The ability to work family friendly hours;

• Requirement for RMS to consider internal skills before utilising independent/professional services contractors or labour hire arrangements;

• Enhanced consultation provisions (particularly relating to contracting out of work);

• Improved working from home arrangements;

• Commitments to discuss greater flexibility during the Christmas Closedown;

• Including a traffic commander specific clause

• Enhancements relating to the professional development of engineers;

• A commitment to work with APEA (Professionals Australia) to implement reforms to help attract and retain women engineers;

• Meetings with Maritime management to discuss labour practices;

• Career progression reforms to help those working in Maritime;

• A commitment to providing 10 days domestic violence leave to those affected by domestic violence.

In addition, your unions were successful in stopping significant changes to the IVR/EOI and Maritime section of the Award that would have resulted in a significant loss of conditions for Maritime workers.

Next week members will be sent a detailed list of changes along with a survey for members to vote whether to accept the hard won offer.

Your union officials would like to thank delegates, members and their fellow employees at RMS. Such a positive outcome could not have been achieved without your collective strength, and the powerful case you made together. When members unite they win.