James Vassilopoulos, Melbourne
Eighty members of the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) employed at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology decided on February 8 to continue work bans in pursuit of a new enterprise bargaining agreement.
Negotiations between the NTEU RMIT branch and the university's management have been going on for 18 months. Management is offering workers a 22% increase in pay over four-and-a-half years.
Jeanette Price, president of the NTEU RMIT branch, said that the union is demanding a 23% pay increase and a one-off $1000 payment that would help workers on a lower wage. The union is also seeking the satisfactory resolution of a number of conditions, including professional development, Indigenous employment, superannuation and casual employment.
The union wants an increase in the casual pay loading to 23%, conversion of casual jobs into permanent ones and a cap on the percentage of casual workers.
A number of speakers argued that the union should take the 22% being offered by RMIT management. The meeting voted in favour of the union motion to continue work bans, with just three voting against and three abstentions.
From 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly, February 16, 2005.
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