Energy Queensland Protected Action Ballot
Urgent Update:
- Our Protected Action Ballot is due to open on Monday, 26 February 2024 and will close at 2:00pm on Monday, 4 March 2024.
- Vote ‘Yes’ to each ballot question - this gives us more options to tailor the types of action we can take, voting "Yes" will provide us the leverage needed to deliver the workplace conditions Energy Queensland workers deserve.
As you know, we have been engaged in negotiations for your new Enterprise Agreement since October 2023.
Significant efforts have been made by our Union, along with the ETU and Professionals Australia, to deliver the workplace conditions that EQL members deserve, as well as the conditions needed to attract and retain the workers needed to complete the Queensland Energy and Jobs Plan (QEJP).
EQL is set to play a critical role in the QEJP and energy transition and will need to rapidly increase its staff to meet the demands arising from this body of work. As such, our Union has consistently campaigned for a new Agreement that will attract and retain top end talent.
Whilst we have been able to achieve some improvements for our members, there are a number of key outstanding claims that need to be resolved.
EQL continue to maintain that it is either opposed to these outstanding claims and/or are unable to agree to them due to restrictions imposed on them by the State Government through the GOC Wages Policy.
As your current Enterprise Agreement expires on 29 February 2024, our Union, along with the ETU and Professionals Australia, have determined that it is necessary to take Protected Industrial Action to deliver the conditions EQL members deserve.
Protected industrial action is a legal form of action taken by employees and their unions during bargaining for a new enterprise agreement.
You can access our factsheet about protected industrial action by clicking this link.
Protected Action Ballot and Important Dates
In order for our Union to be able to proceed with protected industrial action, our members must participate in a protected action ballot, with the following conditions being met:
- at least 50% of the employees listed on the voter roll take part in the ballot; and
- more than 50% of the valid votes cast support the approval of the Protected Industrial Action.
As noted above, our Union’s protected action ballot will open on 26 February 2024 and close at 2:00pm on Monday, 4 March 2024.
Recently we surveyed EQL members to determine if they supported taking Protection Action. The response we received was a resounding 'YES'.
We ask that you to vote in the ballot to have your say!
You will be asked a number of questions in the ballot around protected industrial action. We encourage you to vote ‘Yes’ to each question, even if the question is not applicable to you and your work practices, to provide us with the leverage needed to deliver the workplace conditions EQL members deserve.
Voting ‘Yes’ does not require you as an individual to take the requisite action, it simply provides our Union with the ability to take that action if our members elect to.
We have an information sheet about the questions you will be asked, which can be accessed by clicking this link.
Our Protected Action Ballot will be conducted by an organisation called CiVS, who will be contacting you by text message and email. Please ensure you keep an eye out for their correspondence.
Even if an action on the Ballot does not apply to you specifically, please remember that your colleagues still need your vote in order for them to be able to take Protected Action.
Vote ‘Yes’ and provide us the ammunition we need to force Energy Queensland to deliver the conditions you need in your Agreement.
Key Outstanding Claims
We know EQL has been sending out regular communications that try to paint their current proposed package for a new Enterprise Agreement in a positive light.
As such, you might be asking yourself: why haven’t the Unions reached in principle agreement?
The current problem from our Union’s perspective is twofold:
- There is very little that would significantly benefit the majority of our members in the current package put forward by EQL. If you review the list of outstanding claims below as well as the claims that have been already agreed, this will become clear; and
- The current proposal is less than what is currently offered or will be offered by other comparative employers. If the current proposal were accepted, EQL is likely to have lower pay and less favourable conditions than other employers in our industry who are also competing for talent, particularly those operating interstate.
As noted above, there are a number of key outstanding claims that need to be resolved. These include, but are not limited to:
- Introducing an attraction and retention allowance for the technical stream and engineers.
- Implementation of a 34-hour work week, which can be worked across four days, for workers in the administrative stream, and the professional/managerial stream.
- Increasing the superannuation contribution rate, so it is in line with what is being offered by best practice employers in the industry that are operating interstate.
- Introduction of leave loading in the order of 17.5% to be paid whenever an employee accesses annual leave.
- Overtime to be paid at double time (unless a greater rate is prescribed).
- Increasing the quantum of paid parental leave. For the primary carer, the claim is for twenty-six (26) weeks paid leave. For the secondary carer, the claim is for twelve (12) weeks paid leave.
By voting up our protected action ballot, you will provide our Union with the leverage needed to further negotiate for these conditions.
If you want information around what claims have been agreed already, please click the following link.
Next Steps
As stated above, we strongly encourage you to vote ‘Yes’ to each question in the protected action ballot.
If our protected action ballot does not succeed, TSU members will be unable to take part in any protected action, and Energy Queensland will have received the message that the current proposal is good enough.
By voting up our protected action ballot, you will provide our Union with the leverage needed to deliver the working conditions Energy Queensland members deserve.
Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office on (07) 3844 5300 so you can speak with either:
- Rebecca Girard, Deputy Secretary;
- Ben Ellis, Senior Industrial Officer or
- Brendan Parkinson, Senior Organiser.
The Servies Union is by your side during these negotiations.