Brisbane bus drivers have walked off the job for two hours this morning after negotiations between the Rail, Tram and Bus Union and Brisbane City Council fell through.
Up to 436 bus trips were affected between 4am and 6am, with union members encouraged to finish their routes and jump out.
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The industrial action comes after the council and RTBU failed to come to an agreement regarding pay increases for bus drivers. Negotiations have been going on for more than a year.
“Our member’s agreement expired on the 7th October last year, which means the new agreement should have started the next day. But there is still no new agreement 4 months after the expiry date,” RTBU bus and tram secretary Tom Brown says.
“We have attended every EBA meeting and bargained in good faith but cannot get a decent pay offer from the Council. This is why our members are angry and demanding back pay.”
Brown says the only offer made by the council has been well below inflation and “doesn’t go close to helping with cost of living pressures”.
“RTBU members haven’t had a wage increase for over a year. It’s time Brisbane City Council came to the party and offered a fair wage increase,” he says.
For the past 12 months, members have been taking low-level industrial action with drivers wearing casual clothes and working to rule.
Brown says while these moves have nudged the council, they have been “forced to step things up” to get action.
“It’s an important escalation and may pave the way for increased action if Council don’t get serious in negotiations,” Brown says.
“It’s time BCC got fair dinkum about a fair deal.”
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