PSA seeks 6.5% PA in Public Sector pay case

The PSA has lodged a pay claim for 6.5% per year over the next three years under the Public Sector Salaries Award.

The claim defies the Iemma Government's stated policy position of capping public sector wage rises at 2.5% a year unless there are trade offs and cost savings.

The PSA has already firmly ruled out any cost cutting measures to offset any additional increase.

The Government has made an offer of 3% which equated to 2.5% plus an additional 0.5% in exchange for a sea of trade offs.

The offer excluded a large slice of our membership such as school administrative and support staff, the RTA and The Zoo.

The PSA Executive flatly rejected the offer and we have advised the Government we will not entertain any offer that does not include all agencies and departments under the current award.

The NSW Industrial Relations Commission has been notified that the PSA will be running a major arbitrated case for all members under the award.

There have been a number of conferences in connection with the claim.

PSA staff have been preparing evidence for several months, the largest and most time consuming part of which has been gathering detailed evidence of productivity improvements.

Agreement has been reached on the representative sample of Departments and Agencies to be used for the PSA's case to demonstrate productivity improvements across the entire public sector.

They are:

1. NSW Police

2. Department of Ageing, disability and Home Care

3. Department of Environment and Climate Change

4. Department of Commerce

5. Department of Corrective Services

6. Department of Education and Training

7. Department of Primary Industries

8. Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales

9. Attorney Generals

10. Department of Local Government

11. The Rural Fire Service

12. Office of the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority

4-24 September and 14-16 October have been set aside as hearing dates for the case.

Some of the proposals for cost savings which the Government has put to the PSA include;

• reducing sick leave accrual

• requiring a medical certificate when more than two consecutive days or more than five days in any year of sick leave are taken

• backfilling on a permanent basis the position of an employee who takes Leave Without Pay for more than a year

• blocking access to flex leave for those who have eight weeks Recreation Leave accrued

• restricting the provision for meal allowances

• Departments determining whether they book and pay for accommodation or sustenance

• restricting special leave for trade union activities to a maximum of 5 days per year

• replacing Departmental job evaluation committees with one person.

"The Government is proposing all sorts of things in a desperate attempt to wriggle out of paying public sector workers properly for the work that they do," said PSA General Secretary, John Cahill.

"I believe that our claim of 6.5% a year over the next three years is not only a fair reflection of productivity gains made since the last award but will also crucially allow members to stay a step ahead of inflation."