The results of a Staff Association poll on Executive’s revised pay proposal have revealed a significant change in the sentiment of union members on the current state of bargaining; with ramifications for the future of enterprise agreement negotiations at CSIRO.
More than 1,400 Staff Association members took part in the poll, following the release of a revised pay proposal from CSIRO Executive, which features an 11.2 per cent increase over three years (4% in the first year, followed by 3.8% and 3.4%) plus back pay to November 2023 and an additional one-off payment equivalent to 0.92 per cent of base salary.
58 per cent of respondents agreed that the revised proposal represented the best outcome CSIRO staff could expect to achieve while 42 per cent of participants rejected the offer and called for protected action in early 2024.
Members were also asked to consider the revised offering in the context of the current state of negotiations, including a number of proposed improvements to employee rights and workplace conditions that have reached in-principle agreement at the bargaining table.
Earlier in November, 83 per cent of Staff Association members voted to authorise protected action. That result followed a previous poll of union members held in October, where 81 per cent of respondents rejected Executive’s initial offer of 11.2% over three years (minus any backpay or additional payments).
While the results of the latest poll show a noticeable shift in overall sentiment of Staff Association members in the context of the current state of bargaining, it’s clear that dissatisfaction with the quality of Executive’s pay stance remains a considerable presence.
Union bargaining representatives will now need to consider the poll results and next steps over the summer break as bargaining talks go on hiatus until the new year.
In a recent all staff webinar, Executive negotiators restated their intention to put forward a new enterprise agreement for consideration of all CSIRO employees in the first quarter of 2024, following approval from the Australian Public Service Commission.
Thanks to the more than 1,400 Staff Association members that participated in the latest poll. This great level of engagement, achieved deep into December, follows similarly strong showings in the Protected Action Ballot and first member pay poll.
Staff Association members with comments or suggestions are encouraged to contact the union by email, speak to a workplace delegate or organiser.
The views of Staff Association members are represented in enterprise agreement negotiations from the workplace to the bargaining table.
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