Same Job, Same Pay under the new government

The RTBU and other unions have long pushed for members doing the same job to get the same pay.        

With a new party at the helm of Australia’s federal government, the RTBU now has the opportunity to gain some further movement in our fight for Same Job, Same Pay

Last year, the Labor Party called for Same Job, Same Pay in their Secure Australian Jobs plan. The plan outlined the unjust conditions of labour hire workers doing the same job and sharing the same qualifications as people directly employed by companies, and committed to remediating these conditions.

The right to secure work and a fair wage were a focus of the federal election, and we know exactly how much an unfair wage disparity between workers creeps into the functions of daily life – paying the mortgage or rent, keeping the lights on, putting food on the table, or having enough money left in the pay packet for fun once the bills are paid.   

Everyone has a right to a secure and stable income.

Labor have talked the talk, and now we need to keep them accountable to walk the walk.

Train, tram, and bus drivers, cleaners, infrastructure workers, operators, maintainers, and more will benefit greatly if we can ensure the new government keeps their promise to legislate Same Job, Same Pay as a workplace right.

We always have and always will stand up for fair pay and the betterment of transport workers’ conditions.

We’ve repeatedly slammed privatisation in Region 6, are working towards EAs amongst the two largest rail industry Labour Hire companies Trojan and Railtrain, negotiating the first ever National Labour Hire EA in the union with Momentum, and protesting in support of Same Job, Same Pay in the 2021 Government Senate Select Committee on Job Security. Same job, same pay is also one of our claims for the Sydney and NSW Trains EA along with anti-privatisation claims. 

But there’s still much to do. It may be a long road but we’re committed to continuing the fight to ensure that Labor delivers action and not just words during their term in government.

It’s crucial that we see this policy fulfilled. As a union we will need to guide that outcome in the right direction and we will do so with the full involvement of our members.