Workers at Geoscience Australia have taken industrial action for the first time in thirty years in order to pressure management to negotiate in good faith with them for a new collective agreement.

AMWU and CPSU members voted to take action following management’s intransigence over wage claims and more equitable career path advancement.

AMWU organiser Jane Timbrell said that the workers are frustrated by their inability to have access to an independent umpire to help resolve the dispute.

“Workers at Geoscience Australia receive wages below those of other Commonwealth agency workers and we want this fixed. 

There is no valid reason for them to receive low salaries in comparison to their colleagues in similar areas.”

Ms Timbrell said that workers were particularly concerned about a career path structure which workers face difficulty accessing due to a patronising management culture.

“Staff are tapped on the shoulder and told not to bother applying for Merit Advancement.

“The way it works is discriminatory particularly against certain groups of workers.”
Ms Timbrell said that emails have been sent to staff warning them that if they took industrial action it would be ‘career limiting’ and hamper their chances of ongoing employment.

Workers at Geoscience handed out leaflets to the public on their Open Day explaining their position.

“The community understands that workers at Geoscience do very important work such as carbon capture and storage, natural hazard impacts including the tsunami warning system, and research on water efficiency.”

Recently, fifteen years of scientific and technical expertise secured a landmark United Nations decision securing an extension of the continental shelf of Australia by almost 35%.

“We are of the view that quality work deserves fair pay. It’s about time management showed some respect to its workforce and started to negotiate with us in good faith,” said Ms Timbrell.