The following article about a strike by AMWU workers for fair wages is repostd from the AMWU website. Visit the link below and leave a comment of support for the workers or even better get down to the picket line to offer your support in person at 25 Glenbarry Road in Campbellfield
http://www.amwu.org.au/read-article/news-detail/558/Megabolt-workers-fig...
Sep 02, 2010
Workers at Megabolt in Campbellfield have been forced to take protected action after negotiations to establish their first union collective agreement broke down.
Until they joined the AMWU to fight for a better deal, some workers had been on only $15 per hour, for up to ten years.
More than 25 AMWU members stopped work on Monday, fed up with the company’s reluctance to finalise the negotiations.
The members have lowered their wage claim by 10% since negotiations began in December last year, but Megabolt is still offering an increase 2% lower than workers will accept.
Union members are seeking a wage rise of 20% over three years, which would see many Megabolt workers earning above the minimum wage for the first time.
The members are asking for the new agreement rates to be backpaid from 1 April 2010, and for income protection, monthly RDOs and improved health and safety measures including a heat policy.
AMWU Delegate, Zelko Cimboro, says the workers have had enough.
“Negotiations have been going on for about nine months now – back and forward, back and forward – we just couldn’t get an agreement.
“The company’s bargaining team just kept saying they couldn’t make a decision, that the company director had to make the decision, but he never came to any of the meetings, so nothing ever got resolved.
“So we took a vote, and we voted to take protected action, because in the end we just want this sorted out but the company kept dragging their feet.
“Now they want to meet again and we’ve said we want to meet with the company director so we can actually get this sorted out”, he said.
Although the plant has remained open, with non-union workers and contractors remaining on site, morale has been kept up and the majority of Megabolt workers have joined the action.
“It’s been a good action and it’s going to be a good agreement”, said AMWU Organiser Ali Mulipola.
“We’ve had workers sign up to the union on the day so they can join the picket line. They really want to see the company do the right thing.
“Already we’re seeing a result in that the company director has finally agreed to attend a bargaining meeting for the first time next Monday”, he said.
Robert Djurdjek, deputy shop steward, joined the union after he was subjected to workplace harassment, which he was able to resolve with help from the AMWU.
Now, he wants to see a fair resolution for all Megabolt workers in the form of an acceptable collective agreement.
“I want to see us come to a fair conclusion with our claims, because we’ve come down with our figures but the company’s still just dragging it out.
“I like my job here, and I’m not one of the guys on minimum wage, but I want to see the workers get back pay, the wage rise, and the RDOs, because there’s a lot of people here with families and kids and that one day off a month will make a big difference.
“It’s sad that it’s had to come to this before the company will take the workers seriously. But we’ll stay out here for as long as it takes.”