Meetings delayed & information not being provided...Union calls for genuine retraining and redeployment talks...
Flexibility of programs at risk...Trialling and Evaluation...MSO jobs...OH&S
May 2008
Meetings delayed
We have had only two meetings with management, and have been told very little about what is going on. Meetings scheduled for next week were postponed because the contracts for the supply of the new system still haven’t been signed.
Information not being provided
We have been disappointed by the failure of management to provide us with any real information about the specifications of the automation equipment and its capacity. They say they are bound by confidentiality agreements as part of the ‘closed tendering process’. It is widely suspected that the Grass Valley Ignite system is the preferred system and the general specs of that system are widely available.
The CPSU wrote to management prior to that last meeting and list the types of information that we believed the ABC was obliged to provide us. We received minimal information and only two examples of where the system was actually being used.
Management has now told the union that it will provide us with a copy of its ‘San Francisco report’. We understood the report is a warts and all appraisal of an automated system. The ABC’s agreement to give us the report is viewed as a positive move and an indication that they may now be prepared to be more open with us about the project.
Jobs at Risk
We still have no real idea about the numbers of jobs that may be affected by the automation project. We have said to management we want to start discussions about retraining and redeployment opportunities now. We said we don’t want to leave it until they have done all their studies and evaluations because by then it will be too late. We said we want individual redeployment and retaining plans developed now….not 6 weeks before the jobs get cut.
Program Flexibility
Members remain concerned about the threat to the quality of the programs posed by the automated systems. The issue is not whether we oppose technological change: ABC staff work in an environment that is constantly evolving. The issue is whether the new systems work and whether the technology should determine the style and format of programs. Most reports indicate that the automated systems work most effectively with static form programs. The system however lacks the flexibility to deal with late changes and live crosses and especially on panel programs.
Trialling and Evaluation
Management intends to proceed with a two tier testing process. They intend to run trials in Melbourne and Sydney of the automated control systems. They said that they intent to stress test the system by running an imitation of each of the news and current affairs programs. The studio will be driven by a Multi-Skilled Operator (MSO). Where the complexity of the program demands additional staffing, they said that they intend to add an additional MSO or MSOs until the program works. Management confirmed that the program EP, director and presenter would be involved in the test. The testing will then be evaluated by a standing committee picked by management. The CPSU has argued that staff confidence in the test results would be improved by including a union nominee on the panel. Management are still considering this idea.
Multi Skilled Operators: MSO
Over the past year management has been advertising an increased range of jobs as MSOs. It is a term that is already beginning to lose its value. By describing everything, it describes nothing.
The limited documentation we have received from management describes all studio staff as ‘MSOs’. In the past week it appears that management have started to refer to these staff as either or as studio operators or as Directors.
Management are asking more and more from the operators, but has resisted moves to set fair work level standards for them. Management agreed to provide the union with a draft role template (i.e. work level standard) for the MSOs last year. We have now given up waiting. A survey will be distributed amongst MSOs asking for their input in building a fair set of pay standards for the MSOs.
OH&S
The demands on MSOs in the studio environment are immense. The job requires high levels of sustained concentration and involves significant levels of stress. We have called on management to undertake a proper health and safety evaluation of the work practice before the system is implemented.
The ABC has said it wants to assess the system after it is in place.
