Coalminers in Tahmoor have been locked out of their workplace again. They've been fighting with their employer, the coal giant Xstrata, for more than 22 months for a fair, new Enterprise Agreement.
Attempts to negotiate have collapsed repeatedly because the company has refused to budge, even during mediated talks.
During a workplace dispute over job security and safety conditions, the workers held a six-hour strike on February 7, followed by a 24-hour stoppage on February 8.
From February 8-15, Xstrata locked out the more than 200 workers with no pay, a dirty tactic given that in Tahmoor one job in every four is connected to the mine.
Workers started industrial action again on June 4 to pressure Xstrata to come to the table. They started with three-hour stoppages then progressed to five-hour stoppages. But when they were notified on June 9 that one of the colliery's longwalls was in trouble, the union agreed to call off the action. This shows that, unlike Xstrata, the union is prepared to be reasonable.
But on August 20, Xstrata locked out the 200 workers again 鈥 this time until September 7. Bob Timbs, vice-president of the Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU) lodge in Tahmoor, wrote on the blog Xstratafacts.com: 鈥淟ast week, we took a vote on the latest offer from the company.
鈥淭he two main points of contention for miners were the lack of job security, including the lack of a 鈥榗ontractors clause鈥 that would put some limits around the way contractors are used; and compulsory 12-hour shifts.
鈥淢embers at Tahmoor want shifts over 10 hours to be negotiated on a case-by-[case basis], to ensure against fatigue. The vote against Xstrata鈥檚 offer was overwhelming 鈥 six for, 197 against. This lock-out is pure retaliation 鈥 a bullying tactic by a company that didn鈥檛 get its own way.鈥
Xstrata has accused the CFMEU of 鈥渦ndermining negotiations鈥 because the locked-out mineworkers are receiving so-called 鈥渟trike pay鈥. The company has just reported that its first-half year profits for 2010 have tripled. Xstrata's net income rose to $US2.3 billion from $690 million a year earlier.
Timbs told the August 25 Illawarra Mercury: 鈥淚t鈥檚 not strike pay from the union, it is money that has been given to us through a trust fund 鈥 all the other miners in Australia are throwing in for us.鈥
Timbs said the company was angry it wasn鈥檛 able to 鈥渟tarve the blokes out鈥.