CWU T&S WEEKLY BULLETIN NO 2020 / 36
20 Sep 2020
TELSTRA TOILETS
Your comments:
I'm happy for Telstra to close toilet facilities in exchanges .as long as our managers, including the Executive close their toilets as well. Imagine the suits getting stuck in the lift or running up George Street looking for a Macca's after eating last night's dodgy vindaloo.
The public toilets in my town, while modern, are used by the local intravenous drug users so we are at risk of a needle stick injury.
SILCAR EBA
The Silcar Telecommunications Enterprise Agreement 2016 has a nominal expiry date of 31 Dec 2020. It will remain in force, even beyond that date, until replaced. Negotiations will commence soon. Would members please contact me on our numbers below so that we can discuss our position?
RETIRED MEMBERS NEWSLETTER
The Telecom Retired members Association is active and produces a regular bulletin. See their
Web Page
WORK FROM HOME - A STUDY FROM USA
I have included a short extract from a study in USA. Does this sound like the Aussie experience? Any comments?
Work-from-home employees whose days seem longer, with more meetings and emails than ever before, may find a new Harvard Business School study validating. An analysis of the emails and meetings of 3.1 million people in 16 global cities found that the average workday increased by 8.2%-or 48.5 minutes-during the pandemic's early weeks.
Employees also participated in more meetings, though for less time than they did before COVID-19 sent many workers home.
"There is a general sense that we never stop being in front of Zoom or interacting," says Raffaella Sadun, professor of business administration in the HBS Strategy Unit. "It's very taxing, to be honest."
Shifting to remote work at the start of the pandemic stripped away whatever was left of the elusive 9-to-5 business day and replaced it with videoconferencing and "asynchronous work." With at least 16% of Americans planning to keep working from home part of the time after COVID-19 abates, researchers are probing how virtual interaction might reshape organizations.
TELSTRA FORCED ANNUAL LEAVE
We still hear reports of pressure to take leave. For example, if you have less than 6 weeks leave, it is an offence for a Telstra manager to direct, or pressure you to take ARL. Penalties apply not only to Telstra but also to the manager personally. See our Fact sheet -
Forced ARL Fact Sheet
OPTUS SUPERANNUATION
Optus has advised that it is making some corrections o superannuation payments. The amounts are small. If you have any issues please contact us.
CWU HONOURS VALUABLE SERVICE
This month the CEPU awarded honorary life membership to three members for their long service to the Union and Branch as officials. They were Ian McCarthy, Lloyd Harris and Alex Jansen. All three contributed to the success of the Branch and gave up their time to manage the Branch. We thank them and wish them a long and prosperous future.
POST PROBLEMS - THE NEW DAILY
Extracts: Post chief executive Christine Holgate came under fire over an extraordinary push to have Pauline Hanson stubby holders delivered to public housing residents in locked-down Melbourne. Ms Holgate is Australia's highest-paid civil servant, earning more than $2.5 million last year, and her reported bid for senior executives to be paid $7 million in pandemic bonuses was shot down last week.
The New Daily asked Australia Post to respond to postal workers' claims that its alternating delivery model (ADM) is making parcel backlogs worse. The firm defended the changes, and blamed coronavirus restrictions for the ongoing delivery time blowouts that have seen some customers wait up to two weeks for a parcel delivery.
"Significant increases in parcel volumes, coupled with social distancing requirements, reduced flights, increased safety measures and workforce reductions due to Stage 4 restrictions in Victoria mean that we are experiencing increased volumes for our posties and parcel contractors to deliver. This is leading to increased delays in our delivery network," a spokesperson for Australia Post said.
"By moving some of our posties into vans, it gives them the capacity they need to deliver the essential items that our customers have been ordering online.
"In fact, in recent weeks as a result of the implementation of the alternating delivery model, our posties are delivering more parcels year on year than they have previously. The alternating delivery model is providing additional parcel delivery capability as planned."
Post's ADM was pitched to the Morrison government by Ms Holgate in March, as the solution to unprecedented demand for parcel deliveries due to the pandemic, but it has only exacerbated the parcels backlog, Mr Lazaro (CWu Vic) said.
The temporary regulatory relief, which is set to expire in June 2021, has allowed Australia Post to extend delivery times, scrap some services, and redeploy workers to other departments.
Australia Post's COVID changes have exacerbated delivery delays, the posties' union says.
Mr Lazaro slammed Australia Post's management as "out of touch".
"Look at the reality and listen to the posties. Suspend the ADM while we were going through COVID-19. It's not the appropriate model," he said.
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USEFUL QUICK LINKS
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Secretary/Lawyer - industrial matters & advice eg payments, applications, change of details |
Authorised by Dan Dwyer Branch Secretary
CWU Telecommunications & Services Branch, Sydney City, NSW.
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Fact Sheets
2020