‘Intense' discussions, ‘complex negotiations' sparked NSW government's deal with rail unions after lengthy dispute
The government and unions on Friday agreed in the Fair Work Commission to a 12 per cent pay rise over three years.
The Rail, Tram, and Bus Union and the Electrical Trades Union had been seeking a 32 per cent pay rise over four years, while the government offered a 9.5 per cent rise over three years.
The dispute led to a series of industrial action, that disrupted travel for millions since last September.
The deal ends protected industrial action by the Combined Rail Unions and allows Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink to focus on improving reliability across the network, the government said in a statement on Friday.
NSW Transport Minister John Graham said there had been 'intense' discussions with the rail unions in the lead up to the deal.
'We have had good, if intense discussions with the rail unions,' Mr Graham said at a press conference on Saturday.
'We're in a position to lift pay and conditions of rail workers, but also deliver to the public.'
A number of the changes in the new agreement could make a real difference in the response to disruptions such as last week's incident where a live wire fell on top of a train in Strathfield.
This includes consultation clauses and the roll out of new technology across the network that 'just simply isn't in place'.
'It gives the hope that should something like this happen again, right in the dead centre of the network — the worst place possible — the ability to recover the train network way more rapidly would be there now,' Mr Graham said.
'That would make a big difference to our ability to deal with disruptions on the network.'
He added routine maintenance would be easier without constant industrial action.
Sydney Trains chief executive officer Matt Longland called the deal an important milestone following a 'complex negotiation process'.
'We've got to a position that we've worked through, and we now have approval in principle to take that package to our staff,' Mr Longland said.
'Although that's great news for our people, it's also really positive news for passengers.'
The rail network is being modernised, Mr Longland said, including by way of new technology and moving away from manual processes.
'I acknowledge it's been a challenging period for passengers who've been regularly disrupted, not only through industrial action, but also incidents across the rail network,' he said.
'This now gives us the reset we need to work with our people to stabilise performance and invest in the rail network to improve performance in the future.'
ETU expected to reject deal
However, the ETU is expected to reject the deal.
'This afternoon, the Combined Rail Unions (CRU) reached an in-principle agreement with Sydney Trains and NSW Trains for a new enterprise agreement,' the CRU said on Friday.
'Unfortunately, the ETU is blocking a vote by members effectively withholding any pay rise or new conditions that our EA delegates have fought so hard for.
'The reason they are blocking a vote is due to a misconceived claim to create a 'new section' for their members, for a purpose nobody understands.'
The proposed Enterprise Agreement, facilitated by the Fair Work Commission, delivers rail workers a 12 per cent pay rise over three years plus back pay.
It will deliver agreement on a number of technology-based solutions to improve recovery times when incidents on the tracks bring the system to a halt.
For example, train crews will support the introduction of a new digital disruption management
system that will end the current practice that relies on a manual system of phone calls and paper-based instructions during recovery from an incident.
The unions and government have also reached agreement to move to a streamlined process for consulting on new fleet, systems and infrastructure projects.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
10 minutes ago
- News.com.au
These ASX goldies are close to unlocking producer status
With the soaring gold price, Australia's next mob of near-term producers are champing at the bit to get their projects up and running. The timing couldn't be better to open a new gold mine, with price above A$5100/oz at the time of writing. Gold projects are unique in the mining world. With the advantage of installed infrastructure and a high price relative to more common metals, even a small gold operation can be a money-spinner. That means junior operators can quickly open up and generate cash from relatively modest operations with construction timelines that run shorter than a two-bed house. In a sign of the times nano-cap gold explorer Javelin Minerals (ASX:JAV) is chasing the goal of mining the ~34,000 recoverable ounces at its Eureka project in WA from the first quarter of 2026. One of two advanced projects on the company's books along with the formerly Ramelius Resources operated Coogee project east of Kalgoorlie, the decision to push ahead with Eureka could put $25-30m in the bank account of a company currently capped at just $12.5m. "When we executed the agreement to acquire Eureka, the gold price was around $3000 Aussie, which is only around 12 months ago when we first negotiated the transaction," Javelin executive chairman Brett Mitchell said. "The fact that it's up 40% from there, it opens up possibilities that we haven't seen before and the sector hasn't seen before, which is really exciting. " Assets that sort of haven't seen the light of day previously in larger companies are available and potentially to be picked up by smaller companies and developed." The project hosts a resource of 2.45mt at 1.42g/t Au for 112,000 ounces, including 62,000oz indicated, and a quick pathway to mining means the company could create rapid value in the current record high gold price environment. JAV is considering several options to mill its ore nearby, including the Paddington gold operations owned by Chinese giant Zijin Mining just 20km away. Engineering studies and the approval process for the restart of mining are well advanced, with the board aiming to be mining within 12 months. There's also room to grow the resource, with exploration progressing in parallel. That's a major benefit of the decision to mine at Eureka, which will see a contractor take on the risk of funding the development while Javelin rakes in millions in fresh capital without diluting shareholders. " A) it is transformational, b) it enables us to go and self-fund without any more requirement for capital, allowing further exploration at Eureka and Coogee," Mitchell said. "We can also look at other complementary gold project acquisitions in and around the WA Goldfields." Big and small developers heading for producer status Javelin isn't the only ASX gold explorer en route to becoming a producer in quick time. Here's a run down of some of the miners running hard toward development. Star Minerals (ASX:SMS) Star Minerals is aiming to become a small-scale gold producer at its 45,000oz Tumblegum South project as soon as 2026. A scoping study for the project suggested at gold prices from A$3000 to A$3800/oz the updated production target for the project ranges from approximately 167,000t at 2.43g/t producing 11,800oz gold, to 255,000t at 2.16g/t producing 15,900oz gold. That would generate an undiscounted accumulated cash surplus after payment of all working capital costs, but excluding pre-mining capital requirements, of approximately A$9.4m to A$19.6m. Drill results are pending from a recent program, with the company aiming to convert any remaining shallow inferred resources to indicated within the optimised pit in the project's scoping study. Once operational, the project could feed underutilised mills operated by the likes of Westgold Resources (ASX:WGX) and Catalyst Metals (ASX:CYL). Ausgold (ASX:AUC) AUC will take a little longer to get there, but will be ensconced in the ASX's prospective mid-tier once in production around 2027, after releasing a definitive feasibility study for its Katanning gold project in WA. AUC holds over 3500km2 of what's essentially an entire greenstone belt in WA's Great Southern region, and had an unconstrained resource of 3.04Moz of gold at an average grade of 1.06g/t. As part of the DFS, that was updated to stand at 69Mt at 1.11g/t for 2.44 million ounces of contained gold, constrained to an economic $4500/oz pit shell. The study also detailed an average annual gold production of 140,000oz over the first four years through a 3.6Mtpa processing plant, producing 1.14Moz in total over the mine's first decade. At a fairly modest gold price of A$4300/oz, strong project economics include a post-tax cashflow of A$1.37Bn, IRR of 53%, with all in sustaining costs of A$2180/oz over first four years and A$2265/oz over the life-of-mine. At a recent spot gold price of approximately A$5000/oz (US$3250/oz), the study flags a post-tax cashflow of A$1.36 billion (US$0.88 billion) and IRR of 68%. The plan now is to progress to a final investment decision, with AUC last week banking a $35m cap raising which will enable the purchase of long lead time items and ongoing exploration. Theta Gold Mines (ASX:TGM) Theta is targeting production at its 6.1Moz Transvaal Gold Mining Estates project in 2027, spurred on by record gold prices, announcing a decision to mine last month. The historic South African gold field sits 370km northeast of the global gold and business hub of Johannesburg, near the original gold rush town of Pilgrim's Rest in Mpumalanga. And with spot prices around double that used in the company's 2022 feasibility study it's no wonder TGM is racing to get into production. The old study suggested the project could produce 80-100,000ozpa over a near 13-year mine life at an all-in sustaining cost of just US$834/oz. An updated study is due in September and is expected to deliver vastly superior economics, with the development already boasting a positive net present value of US$432 million on pre-boom prices. Sydney-based equity markets advisory firm RaaS Research Group said last week the company could be due a re-rate once it's in production. On the funding front, TGM has secured a credit approved loan facility agreement and indicative funding terms from the Industrial Development Corporation for a US$35m loan. Forming part of the overall project debt funding, it will make the South African government credit agency a key stakeholder in the project. Challenger Gold (ASX:CEL) Challenger is targeting production later this year for its Hualilán gold project in Argentina. The company is in the midst of metallurgical testwork which is expected to be completed by Q4 2025 ahead of a standalone pre-feasibility study at the project. The company is aiming to confirm heap leaching as a viable pathway for processing low-grade material that was previously excluded from economic evaluation. 'This could materially enhance the scale, economics and development pathway for Hualilan, positioning it as a standout gold project in Argentina,' MD Kris Knauer said this week. CEL also has a three-year toll milling strategy on the cards which – based on conservative spot prices of US$2500/oz for gold and US$27.50/oz for silver – anticipates EBITDA of A$136 million, a post-tax NPV of US$50.5 million, and cumulative post-tax-free cash flow of US$56.7 million. Using a gold price of US$3300/oz, this EBITDA increases to A$221 million. These impressive financial metrics are from toll milling through Austral Gold's Casposo mill, which is based on exploiting only 3% of the current 2.8Moz resource at Hualilan. Mining will be focused on three shallow open pits producing 465,000 wet metric tonnes of mineralised material above the cut-off grade at an average mined grade of 6.2g/t gold and 35g/t silver. Ore will be hauled 165km on a sealed highway to the fully permitted Casposo plant, where recoveries are expected of 84.4% gold and 65.7% silver. West Wits Mining (ASX:WWI) The company is bringing one of the Witwatersrand Basin's historic gold fields back into production, after kicking off development of its Qala Shallows project last month. The 70,000ozpa development is the first step on the road to a potential 200,000ozpa production hub in the South African basin, the world's most productive gold basin responsible for turning out more than 1.5Boz of the precious metal since 1886. WWI controls more than 5Moz and recently executed a buyback agreement taking its stake in the Witwatersrand Basin project from 66.6% to 74%, giving the company more control over the project as commodity prices sit at record levels of ~US$3300/oz. An update to the project's definitive feasibility study is underway to reflect improved economics at higher gold prices – with the old study assuming a price of just US$1850/oz. Updated economics are expected to deliver a lower peak funding requirement, shortened payback period and higher NPV, plus an updated mine plan based on a lower cut-off grade. The company is targeting first gold pour from the project in Q4 this year. Western Gold Resources (ASX:WGR) WGR is fast-tracking its Gold Duke mine into production after securing a binding toll milling agreement with Wiluna Mining Corporation last month. The project hosts shallow, free-milling ore, enabling rapid, low-cost open-pit extraction and early access to production and is just 46km from the Wiluna processing plant. The agreement duration is 24 months, allowing the company to lock in its Stage 1 production, which involves the production of 447,000t at 2.55g/t gold for 34,000oz of gold from the Eagle, Emu, Gold King and Golden Monarch deposits. This was based on the 2024 scoping study which assumed gold price of $3500/oz, well below the current Australian gold price above the $5100/oz mark. An updated scoping study is expected this month. While stage 1 is underway, WGR will also be able to simultaneously develop Stage 2 for potential extensions to the life of mine (LOM) such as Joyners Find and Bottom Camp. 'This marks a monumental leap forward for Western Gold Resources and with gold prices surging, all mining approvals in place and a preferred contractor selected, we are well positioned to accelerate our transition to a gold producer,' MD Cullum Winn said. The company isn't resting on its laurels either, with exploration planned at several brownfields targets including Joyners Find, Bottom Camp, Emu/Eagle Saddle and Gold King/Golden Monarch Saddle. At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Javelin Minerals, Star Minerals, Ausgold, Theta Gold Mines, Challenger Gold, West Wits Mining and Western Gold Resources
ABC News
36 minutes ago
- ABC News
Cancer sufferer's quest for hardship payment plan highlights issues with ACT's strata management system
Amalia Vatavalis was undergoing chemotherapy for cancer when her mother died from a brain tumour in April. In the weeks leading up to her mother's death, the small Canberra business owner struggled to balance everything on her plate, including keeping on top of her bills. "I was trying to balance the chemo, my treatment out with her care, as well having to run a business and work just to pay the bills — it was a lot," she said. She tried to organise a payment plan to keep up with the fees but unlike over the border in New South Wales, the ACT strata system does not allow for hardship provisions for people struggling to pay their strata fees. Her experience highlights issues with the ACT's strata system, issues that are likely to impact more people in the future, with about one in five Canberrans now living in apartments or units. Earlier this month, a Legislative Assembly inquiry into the management of strata properties heard half of all forced bankruptcies in the ACT last financial year were a result of strata companies seeking money from unit owners. After surviving seizures caused by her brain tumour, Ms Vatavalis's mother, Connie, was in "great spirits". So, it came as a shock to Ms Vatavalis when her mum suddenly took a turn and died. "All I could do was cry. I've got one of her pillows, I just wanted to hug it." Feeling overwhelmed, Ms Vatavalis spoke to her home and car loan providers about hardship payment plans, and she said they were accommodating and understood her situation. "I rang my bank. I said, 'I just can't do it, my mum has just passed, I'm overwhelmed', and they were so understanding, they put my mortgage payments on break for a couple of months, which was so lovely," she said. But when it came to trying to set up a payment plan for her body corporate fees for her apartment, she couldn't reach an agreement with her strata manager. "I contacted the strata manager so many times by phone, left messages, they were never available to talk, never got back to me. I emailed them asking [them] to get back to me," she said. "They tell you to do something and it's their way or the highway, there's just no negotiation and that's what I found absolutely abhorrent. Ms Vatavalis eventually had to appear before the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal over her unpaid strata fees and was ordered to pay them back. She said the ACT government needed to change legislation to ensure people struggling to pay their strata fees could access payment plans, similar to those for home loans, insurance and energy bills. The ACT Strata Community Association (SCA) said it was "not opposed" to a framework which would allow for hardship provisions, however it stressed the importance of paying strata levies. "This money goes towards things that are absolutely essential like insurance of the building," SCA CEO Chris Miller said. "There's a statutory obligation to insure the building that's not something they can opt out of, and critical systems supporting life and property, fire systems, CO2 extraction from basements. Mr Miller also defended a strata manager's role in the process when unit owners who have struggled to pay fees have had their requests for payment plans knocked back. "The strata manger is simply an agent for the owners corporation and these matters are determined and decided by the corporation," Mr Miller said. The SCA did however recognise a need for higher standards and mandatory qualifications for strata managers in the ACT, and called for changes to the current set-up. "Strata managers, and potentially assistant strata managers, engaging with customers, doing work on behalf of owners corporations, there should be a requirement for minimum qualifications and ongoing professional development in those roles," Mr Miller said. "Presently in the ACT the only requirement is for the principal of the strata business to have a minimum qualification and an ongoing licence and professional development, we think that should extend to a broader collection of operators in strata management."
ABC News
an hour ago
- ABC News
Game-changing Australian olive processing promises fruity flavour, lower farm costs
Table olives are among one of the most polarising foods — people either love them or hate them. A world-first processing method crafting an Australian-style table olive is aiming to change that, transforming the fruit's flavour while also reducing labour and water usage. John Fielke, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of South Australia, is behind the innovation set to revolutionise the table olive industry. He is on a mission to change how people think about the complex fruit. Professor Fielke said judges at table olive competitions he entered compared the tasting notes of his table olives to descriptors of what people would find "on a fine bottle of wine". "The flavour comments [for the olives] are notes of passionfruit, citrus, berries," he said. The patented method coined "Olives the Australian Way" has also proven to be more sustainable and efficient, keeping the brine to cure the olives from start to finish. For olives to be edible, the fruit requires processing to remove its natural bitterness. Different curing methods, like lye treatment or natural fermentation in brine, then form part of producing the olives' distinct characteristics and flavour notes. Spanish, Greek and Californian-style olives are the most common produced on a commercial scale, but their processing methods are time- and labour-intensive, known for their high water usage and wastewater disposal requirement. Professor Fielke's processing method relies on chemistry to capture the fruit's bitter compounds in the brine and filtration systems recirculating it. "We are putting our olives in the brine in the orchard. [We] keep that brine clear through to our finished pack-out, and repack our brine with our olives. Industry data shows most table olives sold in Australia are imported, with only 3,000 tonnes produced domestically. Australian Olive Association chief executive Michael Southan sees large economic opportunities in the innovation to shift the country's industry. "It will not only grow the production of locally produced table olives, but it's a technology that will be able to be used around the world. It has huge potential." The table olive processing innovation is a lifeline for farmers like George Kratopoulos, who has been battling low return prices and high labour costs. He now regrets reducing his Taylorville family grove in South Australia from the initial 14,000 trees his father planted in the 1970s to 3,000 trees today. As olives bruise easily, he previously had about 20 workers hand-picking each table olive to be sent to produce markets in Sydney and Brisbane. The new method gives Mr Kratopoulos the opportunity to machine-harvest his crop, making the process more efficient. "It's going to be a lot cheaper, there'll be not much labour costs and it's a win-win on both sides," he said. Harvesting the crop straight into brine also cuts his on-farm food waste. "Once we've shaken the fruit, if there's any damage it stops the deterioration automatically, whereas in fresh markets that bruising will show and we'll have to take it out and there is a lot of wastage," Mr Kratopoulos said. He described the new processing method as a "game-changer" giving him hope for a brighter future in the industry. Supported by an Australian Economic Accelerator Seed grant, the innovation aims to raise the country's table olive production 30-fold to 100,000 tonnes in the next 10 to 15 years. The project has reached semi-commercial scale and proven it has plated up fresh debittered olives to consumers quicker. "That is more than halving the traditional time taken from the farm to the market." He and his wife Sue Fielke processed 82 tonnes of table olives this season, with the aim to triple the intake next year. Despite the opportunities the innovation offers, there are major challenges to scaling up because not enough table olives are grown in Australia, according to Mr Southan. "We really need to see more production of olives, and that's both from a productivity point of view, so getting more olives off each tree, and we need more trees," he said. Investment in further bulk processing facilities was an additional barrier to overcome, Professor Fielke said. "We need larger-scale facilities that can be fully automated, computer-controlled and be reliable." While getting table olives onto plates quicker, the new flavours are also attracting food producers and wholesalers. Mount Zero Olives director Richard Seymour is one of the earlier adopters, who considers himself originally a traditionalist. "I'm really interested in the thousands of years of history of fermentation of table olives, but now I'm certainly tending towards a convert to this method," he said. "I think it's creating some really beautiful flavours." He said he believed the surprising fresh, herbaceous, cut-grass characters akin to extra-virgin olive oil had the potential to put Australia on the world map. Watch ABC TV's Landline at 12:30pm AEST on Sunday or stream anytime on ABC iview.
