FED: Unions talk up strike threats as holiday season nears

AAP General News (Australia)
12-09-1998
FED: Unions talk up strike threats as holiday season nears

By Denis Peters, Industrial Correspondent

SYDNEY, Dec 9 AAP - Unions today threatened industrial action affecting Qantas and Ansett
flights, mail deliveries and Centrelink welfare offices during the Christmas season.

The planned actions in coming days and weeks have surfaced despite tough new federal
workplace laws banning strikes except in periods of negotiation for workplace agreements.

A spokesman for federal Workplace Relations Minister Peter Reith said the rash of
industrial action was "one of those strange convergences" but urged employers to take action.

"With any of these issues its up to employers to take appropriate action if the industrial
action is happening outside the legal requirements of the Workplace Relations Act," he said.

"Employers have got remedies if they care to pursue them."

Unionised Centrelink staff walked off the job in Canberra this afternoon amid a series of
rolling stoppages across the country.

The Community and Public Sector Union said the strikes were in protest against federal
government plans to axe 5,000 jobs.

More half-day stoppages are set for New South Wales tomorrow, Tasmania on Thursday, South
Australia on December 15, Western Australia and Northern Territory on December 16 and in
Victoria on December 17.

Postal workers warned Christmas deliveries were under threat as they considered strike
action for the first time in 20 years over a breakdown in negotiations over wages and
conditions.

The Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Unions Queensland branch said meetings in
recent days had overwhelmingly endorsed strike action after a stalemate in talks.

Further meetings over the national award are planned with Australia Post tomorrow and next
week.

December is Australia Posts busiest time of the year and any strike action would send the
mail system into chaos.

Qantas flight attendants warned of possible disruption to flights this weekend after six
colleagues were stood down in controversial circumstances last week.

The six were found to have containers of alcohol on them in a search in Los Angeles, the
Flight Attendants Association of Australia (FAAA) said.

Members had not been properly informed of a new rule whereby members were not allowed to
carry alcohol in their luggage, the union said.

Threatened stopwork meetings could disrupt flight schedules.

Qantas said the matter was internal but it would apply to the Australian Industrial
Relations Commission (AIRC) tomorrow for an order preventing stopworks.

Talks in the AIRC late today appeared to have removed the immediate threat of industrial
strife for rival airline Ansett.

Plans for a strike that would have halted Ansett flights on Friday have been put on hold,
after a clutch of 12 unions and the company agreed to another week of talks before the
commission.

AAP dep/sb/ms

KEYWORD: XMAS STRIKES

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