$1000 Bonus For All Telstra EA Workers: Secured
As members are aware, despite significant improvements being won by the Union through the bargaining process, we could not overlook what we saw as overwhelming shortcomings associated with Telstra’s pay and remuneration offer as part of EA negotiations earlier this year.
Consequently, when the Agreements were formally offered to employees by ballot, the Union did not endorse the offer and committed to continue our bargaining campaign should employees have chosen to vote no.
Our issues with the pay offer were predominately related to the rates wages were proposed to be increased by, along with Telstra’s continued use of discretionary pay-pool arrangements for Job Family employees.
With inflation increasing beyond the point of targets and forecasts as early as the second-half of last year, our clear demands to Telstra during bargaining were for wage increases to at least meet the rising rate of inflation.
Concerningly, cost of living pressures have only grown worse since the time employees made the decision to vote to accept the Agreements – rising their sharpest just after the ballot concluded.
Following this sudden jump in inflation, the Union wrote to Telstra for further pay negotiations, despite the EAs being voted on and accepted by the workforce in good faith.
As an outcome of discussions, Telstra will now pay an additional one-off $1000 bonus to be paid to all EA employees just prior to Christmas.
This payment, inclusive of superannuation, will be paid to every Australian-based Band 2-4 employee covered by a Telstra EA, Band 2-4 employees in SEAL and Telstra Purple EA employees.
The payment will be made to Telstra Purple employees on 15 December, and remaining employees on 21 December 2022.
Although any additional remuneration commitments outside the EA is welcomed, the Union remains conscious, and concerned, with the rising cost of living pressures – and the impact of those pressures on Telstra workers and their families.
As such, we are continuing active and open engagement with Telstra as inflation continues to rise.
