Christmas cheer for Custodial Corrections
Custodial Corrections members and delegates have secured a major win by reaching in-principle agreement with the government for a new collective agreement ahead of the state government’s deadline of 31 December.
This means that workers in Custodial Corrections will access the government’s 4.5%/4.0%/4.0% wage increase, starting from 1 April 2010.
A major win has been the restoration of leave loading to 27.5% of base salary for shift workers. This provision is back dated to 21 December 2009, and the back-pay of leave loading will take place after certification of the agreement next year.
A new joint management-union committee will be created to review the classification structure and suggest improvements.
These provisions are both reflective of the campaigning and work of QPSU members. The government initially refused to look at restoring leave loading to its previous level, but the threat of a rally by Corrections members outside the IR Minister’s office and a delivery of thousands of postcards from members in Christmas stockings made them change their minds quickly!
A productive meeting with the Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations was followed by breakthroughs in negotiations, culminating in the in-principle agreement struck yesterday.
Corrections members have worked hard to bring the government around to the in-principle agreement, holding workplace meetings, regular delegate conferences, and participating in actions to draw attention to our claims.
Drafting and final negotiations in the agreement will continue in the new year. When the agreement has completed the drafting stage, it will be presented to QPSU members for endorsement via vote. Assuming that the vote of QPSU members and the government ballot of employees are successful, the agreement will be certified and all of its conditions will take effect.
The full heads of agreement that have been approved by delegates is available at www.qpsu.org.au/corrections.
Congratulations to all Custodial Corrections members on achieving such a strong result, by being organised and committed to improving their lives through their union.
Our sponsors
