ACTU Media Release 05 July 2006

There is more evidence today of employees copping substantial pay cuts and losing basic conditions like award sick leave entitlements under the Howard Government's new AWA individual contracts.

"Today we have another example of the impact of the Howard Government's new IR laws and the fact that the Government's AWA individual contracts are being used to cut worker's pay rates and undermine Award conditions," said Greg Combet, ACTU Secretary.

Around 80 staff at a Melbourne call centre operated by Global TeleSales - a subsidiary of the giant German airline Lufthansa - have been offered AWA individual contracts that cut their take home pay by up to $80 a week.

The AWA contracts cut evening and weekend penalty rates and penalise staff for taking sick leave or leave to care for a family member.

The Lufthansa AWA example follows the case revealed this week of a young woman miner who was bullied and sacked after she refused to sign an AWA individual contract that required her to pay a $200 'fine' if she called in sick with less than 12 hours notice.

These examples of unfair AWA individual contracts follow a recent admission by the Office of the Employment Advocate that every AWA individual contract registered under the new IR laws has removed at least one award condition and:

• 20% of AWAs don't even provide the minimum sick leave or 4 weeks annual leave
• 64% have removed leave loading
• 63% cut penalty rates and overtime
• 52% cut shift loadings
• 14% pay a casual loading of less than 20%
• 16% removed ALL protected award conditions
  

This is another clear example of how the Howard Government's new AWA individual contracts are all about cutting workers' pay and conditions," said Mr Combet.

more info: Your Rights At Work | Send a protest email to Lufthansa