Lend Lease negotiations continue
The CWU is continuing in negotiations with Lend Lease for an Enterprise Agreement (EA) which will cover employees working on the company’s NBN contracts. The most recent bargaining meeting was held on 6 December.
Lend Lease initially tabled a “bare bones” draft EA with what largely amounted to minimum award conditions. It also wanted to roll up a number of cash entitlements into the general pay increase.
That would have been a loss for those employees who have to date had access to those payments over and above any wage rise.
The CWU has been successful in getting some of these payments back into the agreement as separate items e.g. the 17.5% leave loading and the height allowance. It has also negotiated an increase in the Living Away from Home allowance.
The overall wage rise being proposed is 3% per annum for three years.
There remain a number or areas where agreement hasn’t yet been reached.
- The CWU wants all Lend Lease employees to have access to a portable superannuation fund – a standard provision in agreements in the construction industry and increasingly relevant to telecommunications workers, especially those engaged on NBN work.
So far, Lend Lease has only agreed to continuing this entitlement for those who already have it but won’t extend it to all employees.
- The CWU is arguing that current employees should not be required to do shift work except on a voluntary basis.
- The union is also pressing for an increase in superannuation payments and
- inclusion in the EA of clauses relating to inclement weather.
Members will be kept informed of the progress of negotiations. At this stage, the CWU expects to be holding teleconferences with members in the week beginning 12 December.
