Telecommunications
No way to the ECA
(15 January, 2009): Given that Telstra continues to push its so-called Employee Collective Agreement (ECA), we continue to analyse what is wrong with it, so you can make a proper assessment about the ECA.
Make sure non-unionists get a copy of this as they will ultimately get a vote on the ECA.
What’s Wrong With Part A?
PayThey are offering a real pay cut relative to current cost of living increases.
Redundancy
They haven’t protected the redundancy agreement. While the current redundancy payout is included for three years, the rest of the protective clauses have been excluded, so “they pick you go”, with no arbitration to stop them.
Who decides?
Telstra is refusing to allow you to have the Australian Industrial Relations Commission available for settling disputes. The dispute clauses contain no binding arbitration and therefore there is no effective way to enforce the ECA or resolve any unfair treatment disputes with your management. Telstra will be the judge, jury and executioner on all occasions.
Performance regime
Telstra totally controls the performance management system and performance pay system, and will continue to use it to your disadvantage with no checks and balances. It must be regulated by agreement
Facilitative clause
Telstra will use the facilitative clauses to change your hours of duty, your span of hours and your days in the week and there will be few checks and balances.
Downgrades
Once adopted the ECA would be used to manipulate major downgrades of positions across the board, without any recourse for employees. Compulsory arbitration is required to enforce any of the current bandings.
What’s Wrong With Part B?
This is the section of the agreement for all new starters and most employees coming off their AWAs in the future?
Pay rates
The rates of pay for new employees have been lowered by thousands of dollars per annum.
No increases
There are no guaranteed annual pay increases for Part B staff, only “October reviews”.
Banding systems
The system of banding or grading Part B jobs is an inferior system, thousands of dollars below the current union negotiated EBA for similar work.
Working hours
The 36¾ hours per week is averaged over 12 months. That is some weeks you could work 20 hours and some weeks 60 hours. What happens to overtime and penalties in a system like this?
Nowhere to go
There are absolutely no rights for Part B staff to go to the industrial relations commission even for “mediation”. Any unfair treatment disputes will be decided upon by Management, meaning Telstra will be the judge, jury and executioner.
"Collective AWA"
Part B is in effect a collective AWA and a device for Telstra to get around the Labor Governments “no more AWA” laws.
No right to choose
Part B employees have no freedom of choice or rights to move to Part A. This in effect replicates the Howard Government’s WorkChoices principal that takes away the right of employees wishing to go from the AWA to the EBA.
General Comment On The Part A/Part B Non-Union (Eca) Model
Out you goThe Part A and Part B model guarantees that the more expensive Part A employees will be managed out of the business, in favour of the cheaper Part B employees. They will be managed out on sham “performance” grounds with no redundancy payout.
2nd class
Two classes of employees working alongside each other on different pay and conditions. One a lower “class” than the other.
No union to help
In a non-union agreement the constraints against effective union representation and involvement are considerable, with no union involvement in your future collective agreements.
Can you afford to lock yourself in to Telstra's third rate, non - negotiated, non-union agreement?