Virgin management has now released their "final agreement" to replace our current Virgin Ground Crew Agreement and on all counts the ASU National Negotiating Team believes the agreement FAILS and we are urging staff to vote "NO" when voting for the agreement starts on 30th April 2013.
The Scorecard – some important FAILS
There are lots of other issues that need to be fixed in this agreement to make it an agreement that we deserve – ask your local delegate or organisers for more details.
Virgin drops non rostered work
If there is one good thing about the proposal it is that Virgin heard loud and clear your disapproval of the proposed clause about non rostered work and they have revised their proposal for clause 25.4 to look more like what we suggested. This change shows the power of working together to oppose a change that was bad for us and reinforces why a NO vote will be positive.
Isn't the money good enough?
On the surface the increases proposed by Virgin might seem good for staff who are relatively new but the fact is the rates and conditions are still below what other airline workers receive. Our work in Guest Services/Contact Centre has got far more complex and it is not being recognized – we deserve a better deal for all staff which recognises our skills.
It is vital to cast a vote – what you think COUNTS
For the agreement to be voted down a majority of the staff who vote in the agreement ballot must vote "NO". If you do not vote at all then your vote does not count at all.
A majority of staff don't even have to vote for the agreement ballot to be valid. That is why it is vital to vote and have your view registered and counted.
According to the employment statistics given to your NNT over 60% of staff covered by the agreement work in Guest Services and the Contact Centre yet our issues are being ignored by the company.
The Agreement is not that great for Pit Crew either and we are also urging Pit Crew to vote "NO" as well – we can all do better if we stick together and tell Virgin we deserve a better deal.
What happens if there is a NO vote?
If we vote "NO" then Virgin management will have to come back to the negotiating table to listen and act on your concerns. This is what happened with the pilots who voted down their first agreement last year – they got a vastly better deal after they did this, we can too!
Want more information?
For more information please contact your local organisers or NNT - download bulletin here for contact list 
virginaustralia-bulletin130422-014.pdf.
It's now time to join the ASU the best union for Guest Services and Contact Centre team members - join on line https://www.asu.asn.au/asujoin