It has been announced today that the proposed Westpac Group Enterprise Agreement has been voted up through the staff ballot. This is a disappointing result for all of us who have campaigned hard to protect conditions and secure a real cost of living increase for all Westpac employees. However, it is important to note that thousands of Westpac staff have clearly said that management’s pay and conditions proposal is not good enough.
Our union will ensure that any concerns raised by members around the ballot process will be properly examined and where appropriate they will be escalated.
We are proud of the hard work and commitment our FSU Workplace Representatives, and all members across the Group, have shown over the past few weeks and months. By acting together we have built considerable momentum to address the outstanding issues identified during this campaign. While the EA ballot outcome is disappointing, we now have a strong mandate from members and the next steps will be critical.
Next steps
Westpac management will now prepare an application for the proposed agreement to be approved by the Fair Work Commission. Our Union will prepare a submission noting any concerns we have on the proposal. We now expect Westpac to immediately process the promised cash payment and prepare for salary increases due on 1 January 2023.
Members continue to feel the impact around cost of living pressures, excessive workloads/hours of work, and job insecurity. We will be holding FSU Rep meetings next Tuesday 8 November to discuss the next steps in addressing these outstanding issues. If you don’t have an FSU Workplace Representative, make sure that you or someone else in your workplace registers to attend.
Register here – What’s next! Tuesday, 8 Nov at 7pm AEDT
Keep up with the news by joining FSU WBC WhatsApp chat.
In Unity
Your FSU Bargaining Team
