Train privatisation update – Unions dispute “made available” process

The privatisation of our public train system to Keolis Downer will happen this Sunday, 31 January 2021 – but only with the support of 169 public servants. Keolis Downer has not been able to attract enough staff to run the system.

These public servants will be “made available” to Keolis Downer. The PSA and other unions have been seeking details about how this process will work since December when it was first announced, but have only received vague answers. On Wednesday evening at 6.30pm, the PSA received the handbook for “made available” staff, only days before the takeover.

There has been no consultation about the handbook with the PSA, staff or the other unions and we have a number of concerns about the arrangements. Also, we have not had the opportunity to consult with members about the contents of the handbook.

Yesterday unions met with the Department to raise our concerns. The Department was not able to tell us how long staff would be “made available”. This could be anywhere between three months and two years, or even longer. This creates incredible insecurity for members, making it difficult to plan the future, access retraining or move on to other areas of the Department or the public sector where employment is more stable.

The PSA and other unions have put this matter in dispute as there has been no consultation and we have concerns about some of the proposed arrangements.

The Department can legally determine the duties of employees of the Department and the places at which duties are to be performed under section 47 of the Public Sector Act. However, it was never contemplated that this section would be abused to assign public servants to work for the profit of private operators in the context of a privatisation.

Keolis Downer has signed a contract to deliver a service it is not able to provide. Instead of penalising the company, the Government is propping it up with hard working public servants.

We are seeking feedback from members about the handbook. It is attached here. Please send your comments and/or questions to janet.giles@psaofsa.asn.au by COB Tuesday 2 February. 

Members who have been displaced by this privatisation but not “made available” should have received a letter about where to report on Monday. You should be allocated a case manager, found meaningful work and be part of the retraining and redeployment program. If you have any concerns or issues please call the PSA Members’ Rights Hotline on 8205 3227 or email hotline@psaofsa.asn.au and a PSA staff member will get back to you.

AGFMA Privatisation Campaign 
We are establishing a campaign group for members interested in providing ideas, giving feedback and being part our campaign about the AGFMA privatisation. The first meeting of the group will be on Thursday 4 February at 6pm by Zoom. If you are interested in being part of this group please email janet.giles@psaofsa.asn.au and we will send you the link.

Please pass this information on to other staff members who are not yet PSA members and encourage them to join.