Aero-Care has circulated a proposed agreement asking employees to vote in favour of it. The ASU advises our members to vote ''NO''.
The ASU believes that the wages in the agreement are too low, that the hours required to work are unfair and that the agreement favours Aero-Care at the expense of employees when it comes to confidential information, intellectual property rights and security of employment.
Agreement fails on many levels
As the saying goes the pay rates look good on paper. But they are pay rates that are barely worth the paper they are written on because the agreement does not have:
- The 25% casual allowance;
- Good penalties for weekend work;
- Shift allowance (unless you work between 1.00am and 5.00am, and then only for the work you do in those hours whereas the Award provides for penalties for all hours worked including these hours).
If you are a casual ASA who has recently joined Aero-Care, and particularly if you are rostered to work a lot of weekends, then you have extra reason not to vote in favour of this agreement.
You miss out on the casual loading and the shift loadings that are in the Airline Operations Ground Staff Award. Shift loading can add from between 15% and 22.5% to your hourly wage.
The Aero-Care agreement does not have Award allowances like:
- the Disability Allowance;
- and the First Aid allowance.
The extra payments for multiple shifts, and the recall payment of a minimum four hours that are in the Award are not in the Aero-Care agreement.
The Award also sets a minimum payment of four hours for shift work, the Aero-Care EBA only has a minimum payment of three hours. The ASU believes this also disadvantages ASAs and AASAs who have just joined Aero-Care.
And then there are peculiar clauses like job security where "job security of employees will be individually and collectively determined by the level of compliance to this Agreement". Then there is intellectual property rights, the agreement says that in the event that the Company fails to renew, re-register or protect any Intellectual Property Rights requiring such protection, employees are precluded from acquiring or utilising those Intellectual Property Rights.
What does this mean? Why do Aero-Care need these clauses?
Who to contact
The Aero-Care agreement is one sided and favours management. The ASU also doubts the proposed agreement will pass the Fair Work Act better off overall test – just like last time. This is why the ASU says you should vote NO. The ASU will then continue negotiating to improve the Agreement.
Aero-Care employees deserve a better agreement.
If you want more information about why to vote NO, please contact your organiser [download the full bulletin below to see contacts].
Download Aero-Care Bulletin #14 - 7 December 2012