Latrobe Valley power plant workers’ pay demands could drive up electricity prices
POWER plant workers at one of Australia’s biggest electricity companies are demanding $180,000 a year for a
four-day week, pay to walk to work from a carpark, and generous superannuation contributions.
AGL has warned that demands from workers at its power plant and coal mine in the Latrobe Valley could lead to higher electricity prices.
The workers, represented by the
militant Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union, want a 20 per cent pay rise over four years, which would end up bringing the average salary to $180,000.
That would soar to more than $200,000 when overtime was included.
Doug Jackson, executive general manager of group operations at AGL, said the demands were “outrageous”.
“They’re holding us hostage,” he said.“Costs of running our business show up on the cost we have to charge our customers, or the savings we pass on to our customers. And that is why we want to be low-cost.
“We’re committed to bargaining in good faith but we’re not prepared to continue to pay these outrageous claims.”
He said claims for staff to be paid for the time it takes to walk from the carpark to their work station were unrealistic.
“It’s another example of unacceptable claims that don’t reflect the reality of the current situation,” Mr Jackson said.
Geoff Dyke, district secretary of the CFMEU’s mining and energy division, acknowledged workers were well paid.
“As the power industry declined, the trade-off was pay increases,” he said.
But he said he was worried up to 40 jobs would go under AGL’s proposed agreement.
The company has claimed only 15 workers would go.
Mr Dyke said AGL was trying to take out 90 pages’ worth of conditions that were in the current agreement, and claimed the company was not willing to negotiate.
“These businesses say it’s a tight market, but the financial report doesn’t indicate that at all,” he said.
He said that the union did not have plans for industrial action and wanted to iron out a deal with AGL.
Workers have already rejected a 20 per cent pay rise over four years, because of fears over job cuts.
The Herald Sun believes AGL’s current wages bill for its Loy Yang power station and mine is $100 million per year.
Of that figure, $20 million was paid out in overtime to the company’s 600 workers on that site — an average of $33,000 each.
WHAT THE POWER PLANT WORKERS ARE DEMANDING
• $180,000 per year base salary for a four-day working week in the final year of pay deal
• 20 per cent rise over four-year deal, (5 per cent per year)
• 14 per cent superannuation payment, up from current 12 per cent
• Time spent walking from car park to work to be paid
• Overtime paid at triple time if pay office delays processing
• $15 per week mobile phone allowance
• $800 prescription glasses allowance every two years
• Paid paternity leave to be increased to two weeks
• Right for employees to not use company email
• Choice of companies to provide lease car arrangements
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