Sydney train strike going ahead after union votes for industrial action
Updated
Sydney Train workers have voted to go ahead with a 24-hour strike on Monday, in a move expected to have chaotic consequences for commuters in Australia's largest city.
Key points:
- Sydney's train timetable will be significantly reduced from tomorrow
- The main disruptions will be on Monday, when workers go on a 24-hour strike
- Sydney Trains has been plagued by disruptions in the past two months
Less than 6 per cent of the Rail, Tram and Bus Union's (RTBU) 6,000 members in New South Wales voted in favour of calling off industrial action in a text message poll.
Industrial action will begin from tomorrow, when workers enact an overtime ban, meaning timetables will be significantly reduced.
The NSW Government has launched fresh legal action to try to stop the strike, with a Fair Work hearing set down for 3:00pm.
The union had been locked in negotiations with Sydney Trains and the NSW Government for about a fortnight.
They rejected a pay offer last week, but negotiations yesterday produced a new offer, which members subsequently voted on.
'They're all predicting Armageddon'
Discussions are being played out amid several meltdowns on Sydney's railways since a new timetable was unveiled in November.
Alex Claassens, NSW secretary of the RTBU, said members were frustrated.
"We have been saying all along that we needed the Minister to come to the table and put some real positions down so our members are totally frustrated with everything that's been going on," he said.
"I think we all know that the straw that broke the camel's back was the introduction of the [new] timetable."
Mr Claassens said businesses should be allowing their employees to have tomorrow and Monday off work, because of the disruptions.
"We have now got to a situation where by virtue of the fact that a few railway workers are having the day off, they're all predicting Armageddon tomorrow," Mr Claassens said.
NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance said he was still hopeful Monday night's strike could be averted.
"It [the strike] is not in the interest of 1.3 million people on our railways come Monday," he said.
"Call off this strike, allow the workforce to be consulted and we'll go from there."
Mr Constance said he would meet union leadership again tonight.
NSW Opposition leader Luke Foley said the State Government had declared war on its own workforce.
"The Berejiklian Government has lost control of the railways, and 1 million rail commuters suffer as a result," he said.
"I urge the union and Government representatives to resume negotiations."
The integrity of the union's SMS vote has been questioned, with some members complaining they did not receive a message.
Mr Claassens conceded the system was not ideal, but said it was the best method he had to conduct the vote.
Members who replied "Yes" wanted to cancel the action, while those who did not respond were counted as supporting the strike. "No" was not an option.
"I don't think texting people like this is a legitimate way to canvas the views of the workforce," Mr Constance said.
Months of railway chaos
The new timetable, which included 1,500 extra bus, train and ferry services in Sydney each week, has put pressure on the railways.
On December 10, evening peak hour turned into chaos after a fatality on the tracks, with travellers at the busy CBD stations of Town Hall and Wynyard advised to walk to Central, Museum, St James or Martin Place.
The dysfunction climaxed on January 9 when the Harbour City's train network was plagued by widespread delays and cancellations, overcrowded stations and carriages.
Commuters complained about journeys being hours longer than usual and platforms being closed at some stations, while Mr Foley described the conditions as "third world".
An unexpected spike in sick leave, coupled with the new timetable and stormy conditions have been blamed for the situation, which were described by NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance as "an act of God".
Earlier this week, 16 people were taken to hospital after a train slammed into a barrier at Richmond Station in Sydney's north west, when it failed to slow down.
That incident has sparked three separate investigations.
Topics: rail-transport, states-and-territories, government-and-politics, sydney-2000
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