Last week Centrelink walked away from negotiations with your union for your next Collective Agreement. Centrelink employees around the country responded by emailing the acting CEO and the Centrelink Agreement team calling them back to the table.
CPSU members have told us that when they emailed Centrelink about their failure to attend negotiations with the CPSU, the form letter response made them think Centrelink are not really reading feedback.
CPSU is happy to let you know that members actions last week has moved Centrleink back to the table, because Centrelink have notified the CPSU that they will return to negotiations as planned on 7th October! Thank-you for your efforts on this point and keep the messages coming through loud and clear!
Now we can get back to the important business of negotiating for an improvement in your wages and conditions at work. Keep up to date with the progress of CPSU claims and Centrelink's proposals by regularly visiting the CPSU Centrelink Bargaining Campaign web page or talk to your local CPSU Workplace Representative.
9 extra minutes a day - Enter our competition!
Centrelink wants 9 more minutes of your time every day. What else could you be doing with that 9 minutes a day? Enter our competition today. The 3 best ideas will win a CPSU digital alarm clock.
Watch this space for more updates on the progress of bargaining.
Check out the latest news below and let us know what you think by posting a comment on the bottom of each news. You can also write us at cpsu.centrelink@cpsu.org.au
Centrelink: What can you do with 9 minutes a day? Centrelink is proposing that all employees work an extra 9 minutes a day. This will increase your standard working day from 7 hours 21 minutes to 7 hours 30 minutes. Doesn’t seem like much on the surface, but add it all up and that’s an extra 4.7 days per year.
[read more]Unfair performance agreements and your Centrelink pay rise If all of your pay rise - all of it! - every year was tied to the results you are given in your annual performance assessment, do you think you would always get a fair pay rise?
[read more]Centrelink pay rates - is this fair? By introducing Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs) for a number of employees, Centrelink has paid above the top of the current Certified Agreement (CA) salaries.
[read more]Hours of work & leave: comparison table Your union bargaining team will be publishing scorecards to help you decide whether Centrelink are proposing a fair deal for your next Collective Agreement. The first in the series is about hours at work and annual leave. [read more]Do the numbers on your hours Here are some important numbers to consider when thinking about your hours at work, what Centrelink are proposing and what you want. [read more]
What's in the Agreement to cover the additional costs that will arise out of the Government's Carbon trading scheme? Compaines are going to start including the increased costs from mid to late next year so they are not behind when the schemme commences mid 2010 which is before the next agreement will end. Cost of living is going to be at least 3 to 4% higher than the normal CPI increase. It has to be taken into acccount within this agreement, the unknowns could be allowed for by linking the compensation that will be required via increased salaries to some neutral index. The organisation & Government couldn't justify an arguement of self funded from within existing Centrelink Budget as it is a program the governmnet is implementing and one they expect and is designed to increase the cost of living to drive some changes in spending, as such the government has to accept that it is going to cost more to run Depts and Organisations and an increase in the funding base has to be provided. Can this be raised and a response sought from Centrelink!
Posted by:Pulse poll What tha???? - 2 Oct 2008, 9:13pm
I was just given a chance to participate in the centrelink pulse poll for personal leave and it was asking questions about how the leave safety net would affect me, which to be honest is simply a ridiculous question for one very simple reason, they have not yet told us how it is going to work. Really if they expect us to be able to answer these questions then we need to know how it will work. Also they give to 24 hours to complete the darn thing what if I had been away I would have missed my chance. Come on fair is fair if they want our say then forget pulse polling they should do it properly set it up like a LNA so everyone can access it. Not just a few who have been selected.
Posted by:Steve - 1 Oct 2008, 3:34pm
What do you suggest Mark? The feedback from members to Centrelink and the various activities done by members around the country has had the effect of Centrelink changing " until further notice" to we will meet the CPSU next week .
Posted by:Mark S - 26 Sep 2008, 3:47am
I must say I agree with fed up. It is my understanding that we are now in an EBA Bargaining period (Correct me if i am wrong). Centrelink have walked away from the table due to a completely separate and as far as the EBA is concerned, irrelevant reason showing their normal contempt for the process and lack of good faith. Industrial action should be immediate and harsh. Emails to the CEO? Please. Its weak responses such as this that make people question the value of union membership. If they are going to act like children, treat them like children.
Posted by:Big R - 25 Sep 2008, 1:42pm
Im not sure youve understood me Bemused. Im not suggesting you give up conditions to fund a payrise. I think you should get a 6pc guaranteed payrise in Jan 2009, no delays, no trade offs. What I'm saying is that people at the top of the pay scale for their job need to accept that their reward for excelling is being at the top of the pay scale. If you want greater reward than that then apply for a promotion or just accept that you are at the top of the pay band and get over yourself. Don't expect to get an extra bonus of performance based pay. If you think that Centrelink will give anyone under the Exec level that you are dreaming. They are using people's desire to be recognised as better than those around them to introduce performance based payrises. It won?t lead to anyone getting extra pay it just means some people will get a lesser payrise. You won't get a bonus for excelling, you will get 2.5pc guaranteed and 1.5pc for excelling making a grand total of 4pc. Big Deal. If you don't excel you will get 2.5pc which will leave you behind CPI. Nobody at C2 and C3 level will be getting 4pc guaranteed and then a lovely 2pc on top for all the super operators. They are using downward envy to play us for suckers. Probation, increments and the existing poor performance rules are there to deal with bad performance. It shouldn't be linked to payrises.
What's in the Agreement to cover the additional costs that will arise out of the Government's Carbon trading scheme? Compaines are going to start including the increased costs from mid to late next year so they are not behind when the schemme commences mid 2010 which is before the next agreement will end. Cost of living is going to be at least 3 to 4% higher than the normal CPI increase. It has to be taken into acccount within this agreement, the unknowns could be allowed for by linking the compensation that will be required via increased salaries to some neutral index. The organisation & Government couldn't justify an arguement of self funded from within existing Centrelink Budget as it is a program the governmnet is implementing and one they expect and is designed to increase the cost of living to drive some changes in spending, as such the government has to accept that it is going to cost more to run Depts and Organisations and an increase in the funding base has to be provided. Can this be raised and a response sought from Centrelink!
I was just given a chance to participate in the centrelink pulse poll for personal leave and it was asking questions about how the leave safety net would affect me, which to be honest is simply a ridiculous question for one very simple reason, they have not yet told us how it is going to work. Really if they expect us to be able to answer these questions then we need to know how it will work. Also they give to 24 hours to complete the darn thing what if I had been away I would have missed my chance. Come on fair is fair if they want our say then forget pulse polling they should do it properly set it up like a LNA so everyone can access it. Not just a few who have been selected.
What do you suggest Mark? The feedback from members to Centrelink and the various activities done by members around the country has had the effect of Centrelink changing " until further notice" to we will meet the CPSU next week .
I must say I agree with fed up. It is my understanding that we are now in an EBA Bargaining period (Correct me if i am wrong). Centrelink have walked away from the table due to a completely separate and as far as the EBA is concerned, irrelevant reason showing their normal contempt for the process and lack of good faith. Industrial action should be immediate and harsh. Emails to the CEO? Please. Its weak responses such as this that make people question the value of union membership. If they are going to act like children, treat them like children.
Im not sure youve understood me Bemused. Im not suggesting you give up conditions to fund a payrise. I think you should get a 6pc guaranteed payrise in Jan 2009, no delays, no trade offs. What I'm saying is that people at the top of the pay scale for their job need to accept that their reward for excelling is being at the top of the pay scale. If you want greater reward than that then apply for a promotion or just accept that you are at the top of the pay band and get over yourself. Don't expect to get an extra bonus of performance based pay. If you think that Centrelink will give anyone under the Exec level that you are dreaming. They are using people's desire to be recognised as better than those around them to introduce performance based payrises. It won?t lead to anyone getting extra pay it just means some people will get a lesser payrise. You won't get a bonus for excelling, you will get 2.5pc guaranteed and 1.5pc for excelling making a grand total of 4pc. Big Deal. If you don't excel you will get 2.5pc which will leave you behind CPI. Nobody at C2 and C3 level will be getting 4pc guaranteed and then a lovely 2pc on top for all the super operators. They are using downward envy to play us for suckers. Probation, increments and the existing poor performance rules are there to deal with bad performance. It shouldn't be linked to payrises.