Background of the Agreement
Following a mass walk-out by staff at the national broadcaster, there is now a tentative agreement in place between unions and ABC management. The proposed deal includes a pay increase of four per cent in the first year, followed by two additional increases of 3.25 per cent each. This is a slight improvement over the previous offer of 3.5 per cent for the first year. However, the previously suggested $1000 bonus has not been included in the current proposal.
Employees who are at the top end of several salary bands will also have the opportunity for career progression and added bonuses. In a staff email, ABC management stated that the position had been endorsed by representatives from the two key employee unions. The offer still needs to be formally accepted through a staff vote.
Positive Assessment from Unions
The Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) provided a positive assessment of the potential deal in a message sent to union members on Tuesday. They highlighted that the significant improvement was achieved due to union members walking off the job and demonstrating their value.
“This significant improvement was won by union members walking off the job and demonstrating clearly what we are worth,” the message said. “Because of that, we now have above-inflation pay for year one on the table, real pathways for band progression and improved reward for hard work.”
Non-media ABC staff are represented by the Community and Public Sector Union. While some employees are supportive of the offer, others have expressed mixed reactions. One ABC journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they felt let down by the deal as it did not reflect the seriousness of the ABC’s first strike action in 20 years. They added that the unions have a lot of explaining to do.
Another journalist noted that the proposal fixed some issues and would be appreciated by some workers. A more pragmatic staffer acknowledged the need to be realistic about what the bargaining committee could achieve given the challenges they faced.
Reactions from Union Representatives
ABC journalist Michael Slezak, federal president of the MEAA’s media section, said the agreement addressed key issues such as the abuse of short-term contracts and job security. He noted that while it is unfortunate that the ABC management waited so long for the union members to take strike action, he is pleased that the situation has been resolved.
“They don’t go all the way … but they address them and that’s a good start,” Slezak said.
Union members will decide on Thursday whether to endorse the agreement. Employees and representatives of the media union met with ABC managing director Hugh Marks on Monday following the mass strike on Wednesday.
Context of the Strike
Negotiations had reached a stalemate when workers rejected a 10-per-cent pay rise across three years, pushing for 13.5 per cent instead. They also protested what they described as the ABC’s over-reliance on short-term contracts. Mediated by the Fair Work Commission, Monday’s meeting marked the first major discussion since the strike action.
The 24-hour strike by thousands of journalists, camera operators, technicians, and other workers forced the ABC to broadcast re-runs, clips from BBC News, and contributions from non-union staff. More than 4400 people work at the ABC, including 2000 in the news division.
