Re: Working Coditions all Enginemen. was Guards to Drive During Olympics?

["Jack" <bd107@tsn.cc>]

Hi Exnarc....

Exnarc wrote in message <7vqfn3$noa$1@otis.netspace.net.au>...
>
>
>> Well I agree that NRC is in a bad situation as far working
>> conditions are concerned but I don't think you can blame Frank
>> Hussey for all of it.
>> I can't comment on the other states but in NSW a lot of the Drivers
>> that went to NRC were Union Executive members from the depots
>> where they had been working. Chullora NRC in particular had a
>> power base of ex Enfield Union bosses. Now as I recall they didn't
>> worry one bit about taking the redundancy and jumping on the NRC
>> gravy train. They just wanted the big money that NRC was offering.
>> These same ex Union blokes didn't worry that what they were doing
>> was going to put the pressure on Train crewing reform right across
>> the Industry. This is exactly what the Government wanted right
>> from the start and they fell for it. Now everyone else is
>> suffering as well.
>>
>
>Thats a pretty broad statement about jumping on the NRC Gravy Train!!!!
>
>Enginemen in Victoria that went to NRC didn't get any redundancy payments,
>not everyone went for the so called big bucks either, I did it for family
>reasons, (others because they thought NRC was a new railway and they wanted
>to get in and be involved in what they saw as a new start for rail in
>Australia) infact most of us (in Victoria) lost big bucks with regards to
>Superannuation, no redundancy money and in my case a loss of over $100
grand
>in super, so don't brand everyone with the one label.

I dont know about Victoria, but in NSW the men were paid redundancy plus,
get this, an incentive bonus to leave the then Freight Rail.. I think it was
either 8 or 15 weeks pay, I cant remember now..

>
>As it turned out, some of us had enough of Vince Graham and his bunch of
>Industrial Thugs and got out when we had the chance, others I'm sure would
>if they got the opportunity. As far as blaming Frank Hussey, well I'll
leave
>that upto the individual, all I will say is that a lot of people put a lot
>of faith in Frank and his word, a lot are disappointed!!!!!

Some blokes now are not getting the chance to leave the organisation, they
are just being finished up.... When a person is one day Your Union rep and
the next day part of management, how could you put a lot of store in what
the person had to say...  Being disappointed is an understatement I reckon,
I think the blokes were conned by the likes of Hussey & Co, and also conned
on a local level, by the Drivers in Charge, during the hiring process... I
think if the drivers had an idea of how it has now turned out, NR wouldnt
have got a taker, well not many any way.... I think the workers were
deceived..

>
>As for changed working conditions that NRC was supposed to have brought on,
>have a look around you, see what is happening in industry in general, the
>work place is changing everywhere, (not for the better I might point out),
>NRC was just one area for change, Frank Hussey didn't do it, the Peter
>Rieth's of this world and their stooges like Vince are the real culprits.

Sure. Reith's legislation makes it a lot easier for the bosses to screw the
workforce, but for it to work U need mongrel companies and mangers to
implement it....
>
>A lot of enginemen have a gripe with NRC, but in many cases its because
they
>missed out on a job, not because they opposed the concept, if that were the
>case many of those now complaining wouldn't have done the job interview in
>the first place would they?

I dont know what the job interview involved, but the hiring policies were
very questionable... NRC hired some people who were not fully qualified at
the time of the job interviews and left behind a lot of good people... But
the people who were left behind should now consider themselves the lucky
ones...

With the flood of applications for a couple of Countrylink jobs in Junee
from NRC drivers, it is obvious to all who look, that this is one unhappy
workforce..



>To those that did miss out and felt (or still feel) angry, cool it, you
were
>the real winners, if thats not the case why are people leaving NRC in
>droves???


I couldnt agree with you more.. When NRC started I think NRC  drivers wages
were a fair way ahead of most others... now it has been whittled back, plus
the NRC blokes have lost a heap conditions, and their management is after
more..

Cheers
Jack
Queensland: Perfect One day
Beautiful the next
And wet for the other 363 days of the year