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 About Us  About Unions NSWAbout UnionsWho's WhoInformation Centre What's Going On? Annual Reports   
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Michael Gadiel, Deputy Assistant Secretary - Industrial
Michael Gadiel, Deputy Assistant Secretary -
Industrial
In 2001 Michael was elected unopposed as Deputy Assistant Secretary. In his new role he continued with his duties in the rail industry, State Transit, training policy, the Internet and information technology. RailRail Industry Re-structureIn response to the recommendations of the McInerney Inquiry, the NSW government amalgamated Rail Services Australia (RSA) and the Rail Access Corporation (RAC) to form the Rail Infrastructure Corporation (RIC). In implementing the recommendations of the inquiry the rail entities embarked on a wide-ranging organisational cultural change program. The Labor Council and rail unions sought to maximise their input into the rail reform program. To assist in this process Labor Councilu retained the services of Dr Daryll Hull of The University of New South Wales and The Productive Edge consulting group. Daryll was the author of the RTBU's publication "Back on Track - Managing Rail Maintenance in the New South Wales Rail Network". In 2001, Dr. Hull worked with the Labor Council, the rail unions, the Office of the Coordinator General of Rail (OCGR), RIC and SRA through the Change Management Steering Committee, which has been the overseeing committee in the change management process. Labor Council has been able to gain the government's agreement to move away from management models based on contestability and outsourcing. In particular the government has agreed that; "Contestability and Outsourcing should not be used to drive cost efficiencies through the rail business". Rail Infrastructure Corporation is engaged in combining the business units of the former RSA and RAC into a single structure. The Labor Council will play an ongoing monitoring role in this process. State Rail Authority (SRA)Labor Council's main activities in the State Rail Authority throughout 2001, other than the handling of day-to-day disputes, focused around facilitation of discussions between unions and management in the development of new policies and procedures governing a wide cross section of the organisations activities. In fulfilling Labor Council's role in the rail industry dispute settlement procedure, Michael assisted in the resolution of numerous disputes including; Wyong Revenue Protection, ticket booths, rostering of leave, use of temporary employees, clearance and cash payment of public holidays and implementation of a 19-day month, as well as a number of individual grievances. Labor Council, rail unions and the State Rail Authority at the end of 2001 commenced preliminary discussions for the next enterprise agreement. These discussions will continue in 2002, which will hopefully result in wage increases for employees. Rail Infrastructure CorporationMichael was involved in the Rail Infrastructure Corporation re-structuring process through the Change Management Steering Committee, and assisted with the Cat 1/Cat 2 issue with respect to the allocation of overtime. Michael, with the assistance of Labor Council Officer Mark Morey, co-ordinated the single bargaining unit for the negotiations for the 2002 Enterprise Agreement. The Labor Council, in conjunction with the Rail unions, put together a comprehensive claim, which was put to management at the start of the Enterprise Agreement discussions. These negotiations will continue in 2002. FreightCorpMichael chaired the negotiations for the FreightCorp Enterprise Agreement. The agreement was registered and provides for a four percent increase over one year. The agreement contains the post sale employment package negotiated between the Labor Council, Rail Unions and the NSW Government. Features of the package include three years employment protection with salary maintenance, a transitional payment to every employee on sale and a voluntary redundancy package of four weeks wages for every year of service. The agreement also entrenches a range of conditions supported by custom and practice such as union right of entry, recognition of union delegates and protective clothing. Rail Industry Award SimplificationLabor Council was involved the Award Simplification process for the five Federal Awards that apply in the NSW rail industry. The process is ongoing, however it is of significant long-term importance to the rail unions that employment conditions are not undermined. State TransitIn 2001 Michael continued to maintain responsibility for the State Transit Authority, which primarily consisted of his role as the mediator in disputes under the Dispute Settlement Procedure. Such disputes included driver authorities, enforcement of bus lanes, maintenance rosters, ticket booths, overcrowding and contracting out of maintenance functions. HealthMichael assisted the Electrical Trades Union of Australia, the Health and Research Employees' Association of NSW and the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Unions in a dispute involving a proposal to outsource the maintenance function at South Sydney Area Health Service to an external contractor. Michael co-ordinated and assisted the unions in organising a community campaign against the proposal. As a result of the campaign and the lobbying of Craig Knowles, Minister for Health, the proposal was put on hold pending negotiations for a new industrial agreement to operate for the service. Information TechnologyEmail Privacy CampaignLabor Council continued to campaign heavily around email privacy, attracting significant media interest in this matter. With the release of the NSW Governments Law Reform Commission Inquiry into Surveillance, Michael, with assistance of Susan Sheather, will be formulating the Labor Councils response in early 2002. Labor Council OnlineIn 2001 Michael, assisted by Paul Howes, oversaw the re-vamp of the Labor Council's website. Re-named Labor Council Online and located at http://council.labor.net.au the new site now contains an extensive range of material, including circulars, minutes, publications, submissions, events and meetings associated with the Labor Council. The site features a private "union only" area, which is accessible only to affiliated unions - all of whom have been issued with a password. This site now reflects the majority of the Labor Council's activities online. IT Workers AllianceMichael convened the union steering committee overseeing the establishment of the IT Workers Alliance. TrainingCommon Rule Training Wage AwardLate in 2000 Employers First and Australian Business Industrial lodged applications in the NSW Industrial Commission to establish a NSW Common Rule Training Wage award. The effect of this application, had it been granted, would have been to bring all trainee employment arrangements in NSW into line with the National Training Wage Award (NTWA) standard. However the NTWA has not operated as an across the board standard in NSW, but has been adopted by a range of industries. Labor Council opposed the application(s) on the grounds that a range of traineeship arrangements had evolved in NSW over the last seven years that were outside the standard form. In many cases unions had been able to achieve wages and conditions for trainees that were above what is provided for in that NTWA. With the assistance of Industrial Officer Nancy Carl, the matter was substantially resolved in the last weeks of 2001 when the employers agreed to an extensive list of exemptions, in exchange for the Labor Council's consent to the making of the award. There are a number of outstanding areas that are to be heard early in 2002. Committees and Working PartiesMichael continues to contribute to a number of working parties and committees of the Department of Education and Training including the New Apprenticeships Reference Group, the Migrant Skills and Qualifications Committee and the Board of Studies VET Advisory Committee. Previous
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