Southern Shorthaul Railroad workers sitting down to dinner with their families were phoned on Wednesday night and told they were being made redundant in what the NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union said is a disgraceful act of corporate cruelty .
The NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union understands up to 50 workers have been affected across regional NSW. It follows the loss of SSR’s contract with Boral after a serious derailment in the Southern Highlands earlier this month.
The RTBU has lodged a dispute with the Fair Work Commission over SSR’s failure to properly consult its workers and a separate matter in the NSW Industrial Relations Commission over the health risks created by the company’s handling of the redundancies.
RTBU Locomotive Division Secretary Farren Campbell condemned the layoffs and said SSR’s workforce were again paying the price for the decisions of its inept management.
“This is awful news but sadly, very on brand for a rogue operator that has repeatedly put cost-cutting ahead of safety and its own workforce,” Mr Campbell said.
“SSR has lurched from safety crisis to safety crisis and now its workers and their families are being made to carry the cost.
“They announced these cuts on 15 July and since then, have provided very limited meaningful consultation before moving to forced redundancies.
“Workers have been left in limbo and denied proper answers, and now hit with life-changing news in the most brutal way possible.
“Regional rail jobs are skilled jobs that support families and communities. We will not stand by as executives shore up their own positions at the expense of working families.”
Mr Campbell said the RTBU would fight the redundancies through every industrial and legal avenue available.
“We have legal action afoot in two separate industrial courts to ensure SSR is held accountable for its cowboy approach to basic industrial obligations,” he said.
“The RTBU stands with every affected member and SSR should be under no illusion our members will not be thrown on the scrap heap quietly.”
Any members affected by the redundancies or concerned about their employment should contact the RTBU.
