Individual contracts at Boeing going, going ... gone!

Around 40 Australian Workers' Union members, who maintain RAAF Hornet jet fighters at the air base, have asked for a union negotiated agreement to replace secretive common law individual contracts traditionally imposed by Boeing Australia Limited (a subsidiary of Boeing Hawker de Havilland).

AWU National Secretary Bill Shorten said a clear majority of the workers had voted to support their right to choose a union agreement and called on Boeing to respect the workers' freedom of choice.

"The individual contracts are unfair, discriminatory and in breach of the principal of equal pay for equal work because Boeing is paying workers up to $2 an hour less than similar workers doing the same job at the same skill level," Mr Shorten said.

AWU Newcastle Branch Secretary Kevin Maher said: "Unlike Boeing's individual contracts, a union collective agreement could provide guaranteed pay rises, longer leave entitlements, increased job security, protection from unfair dismissal and other benefits available to other workers under union agreements."

"Australian workers have a democratic right to choose a collective agreement and to be represented by a union if they decide it is in their best interests," Mr Maher said.

Mr Shorten said the Boeing case was a sign of things to come under the Federal Government's new workplace laws to impose individual contracts instead of industrial Awards and collective agreements.

Tomorrow's legally protected stop work meeting follows a similar meeting on April 21 after Boeing in March refused the AWU's request to negotiate an enterprise bargaining agreement. Mr Shorten and Mr Maher will attend tomorrow's meeting.

Contact Details
AWU National Office
Ph:  (03) 8327 0888
Fax: (03) 8327 0899
members@awu.net.au
http://www.awu.net.au/