Commuters have been warned to expect imminent disruptions and delays across the Sydney trains network – including in the lead up to the busy new year period – after a court quashed a bid to halt industrial action.
The federal court on Thursday dismissed the Minns government’s attempt to stop industrial action – including work stoppages – that rail unions had voted to take.
Toby Warnes, the New South Wales secretary of the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU), said the union would now tell its members they could bring forward industrial action.
Prior to Thursday’s ruling, the union had applied for a fresh protected industrial action ballot – which members voted in favour of – that would be exempt from the interim injunction.
The earliest that industrial action under a new ballot could have taken place was 28 December, but Thursday’s decision removes that time barrier.
“As a result, industrial action will recommence immediately. We’re going back to our office to inform our members to enforce the bans that were on immediately before the injunction two Sundays ago,” Warnes said.
“Our message to the government is our door is open for the next two weeks at least to get this deal done. All we’ve ever wanted is to get the deal done. Come and talk to us and we’ll finish this and let the people of NSW get on with their festive season.”
Warnes said Sydney Trains had not adequately prepared for the prospect of industrial action resuming immediately, and as a result, “there may be significant impact on the network” from Thursday.
“We say to commuters that they deserve a government that values its public transport system and right now it doesn’t.”
After Thursday’s federal court decision, the NSW government vowed to “take every possible measure” to ensure Sydney’s train network runs smoothly over Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
A NSW government spokesperson said the government would now lodge a section 424 with the Fair Work Commission – an instrument to suspend or terminate industrial action if it will endanger life, personal safety, health, the welfare of part of the population; or cause significant damage to the Australian economy – “to protect New Year’s Eve and stop rail disruption”.
The court’s decision follows the treasurer, Daniel Mookhey, and the transport minister, Jo Haylen, facing the Fair Work Commission on Wednesday and weeks of intense negotiations to resolve the pay dispute.
“Another cheap and desperate stunt has failed, leaving NSW families to suffer through a Christmas and New Year’s marred by rail chaos,” the opposition industrial relations spokesman, Damien Tudehope, said after the court decision.
Earlier this month, the government had successfully applied for an interim injunction that effectively paused rolling industrial action – which had been launched after an intense negotiating period for a new pay deal broke down.
Work stoppages, as well as distance limits for drivers and orders to deactivate Opal readers, are among the industrial actions that can now take place after Thursday’s court decision.
Combined unions representing 13,000 rail workers have refused to budge from their demands for a 32% pay rise over four years – 8% per year – while the NSW government’s starting offer to the rail unions has been a 9.5% pay rise over three years, claiming the union’s demand is unaffordable.
NSW police in mid-November won a pay deal that will see wages rise by up to 40%.
Warnes previously said unions and the government had been “within a whisker” of a deal and were caught by surprise when they learned of the government’s “extremely damaging” legal action to block the industrial action.
Before the dispute descended into legal action, combined rail unions had pushed the government into agreeing to run 24-hour services – used as a bargaining chip during pay deal negotiations – or else they would have launched a multi-day strike in late November.
However, the government said 24-hour services were unsustainable long-term given the need for maintenance works overnight.
Additional reporting by AAP