WOOLIES ALERT

Bargaining notifications went up in all the Woolies supermarkets suggesting that negotiations for the new agreement were about to begin. One day later the dates for negotiations went up, roughly one week later they were due to start.

Out of the negotiations members will be in for an unpleasant surprise.  Our informant has said the agreement is already completed, but the Company and our State Secretaries are insinuating that serious and honest negotiations are about to take place.

Once again our conditions are about to be eroded with the pretence that we will gain some benefit. 

Inflation has eaten away the $ value of our wages. Over the past decades the SDA has given away our entitlements. They have reduced our sick pay on weekends, given away our penalties and reduced a large number of allowances.

We cannot afford to accept sub-standard wage increases with no prospect of penalty rates to increase our take home pay.

Our group was formed to pressure incompetent leadership to respond to us, the SDA membership. This can only be achieved by letting our State Secretaries know of our dissatisfaction.  Contact your SDA Organiser or State Secretary and let them know that you are not prepared to be sold out.

We feel that our aims are achievable.  Other unions have negotiated reasonable settlements in the past and will continue into the future.  It is our Union which is sometimes referred to as a sub-branch of the Woolworths empire which has given away too many of our working conditions.

There are sub-groups within the SDA who were originally covered by other Unions, who have expressed a wish to return to their previous Union coverage as their conditions under those Unions’ Agreements were far superior to what they now receive.

We believe that these groups should be able to return to their previous coverage and should not be held hostage because of dishonest arrangements entered into by Woolies and the SDA leadership. For example the bakers want to go back to the Bakers’ Union and the butchers want to go back to the Meat Union.

Woolies and the SDA appear to have commenced a sham negotiating period because they have become aware that there is an organised group trying to rally support for better wage outcomes.

This newsletter has been produced and distributed by RRRSDA reform group.   Our principle aims are:

1.         A decent wage rate.

2.         Restore the casual loading to time and a quarter.

3.         Remove the clause giving employers the right to reduce part-time hours.

4.         Regain some control about compulsory hours, which is having a devastating effect on workers’ personal relationships, family lives and quality of life.

5.         Remove compulsory work prior to 7am and after 6pm Monday to Friday.

6.         Re-introduce voluntary work on Saturdays and Sundays.

Unless the SDA can demonstrate some ability to achieve our principle aims, we would recommend a “no” vote on any sub-standard agreement.

Members need to be aware that the Company through their store managers and the SDA through their gullible store reps will be out to confiscate and destroy our newsletters so we ask all SDA members to reproduce and distribute replacement newsletters when this occurs.

There is a vital need for all members to have access to alternative information to the current Woolworths and SDA co-operative newsletter.

We would appreciate your input and suggestions. Our group is contactable by either the contact section on our website or the email section.  We also have a new format on our blog site to allow for easier downloading of our newsletters.

Our address is:  http://reformSDA.blogspot.com