Court not ‘adviser’ in Sydney trains spat
A judge won't be "a mere adviser" in an industrial spat between the rail union and Sydney Trains given that Opal card readers won't be turned off this week. Photo: AAP
A last-minute backflip on turning off Opal card readers at Sydney train stations has left a court questioning why it should urgently rule on a rail union spat.
Justice Elizabeth Raper said that with no industrial action imminently planned or ongoing, she did not see why the Federal Court should urgently determine whether turning off the card readers was legal or illegal.
“What I have from the union is effectively asking, as I see it, for an advisory opinion from the court which I just don’t think is the court’s role,” she said on Friday.
“At the moment there’s not before me something for which the union says that they are in fact going to do and will do tomorrow.”
A plan to shut off the Opal card readers was announced by the union on Sunday.
However, a lawsuit by Sydney Trains filed on Tuesday seeking penalties and compensation for the allegedly illegal action derailed the union’s plans.
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union filed its own counter-suit the following day seeking declarations from the court that the industrial action was legal.
In the Federal Court on Wednesday, barrister Mark Gibian SC said the union would not go ahead with turning off these machines but would wait until the court had determined the question.
Mr Gibian has continually stressed that the question of whether the proposed protest was legal or not should be heard urgently by the court.
A hearing on whether this should be heard swiftly will take place on Monday.
Meanwhile, upper house MPs led by Labor and the Greens blocked a government proposal to vastly increase the fines unions face for leading unauthorised industrial action.
Under the proposed laws, fines for the first day of industrial action would have increased from $11,000 to $55,000.
Industrial Relations Minister Damien Tudehope said Labor had chosen to support “industrial disharmony and chaos” and the lack of higher penalties meant “Labor’s year of the strike” would be expected to continue.
Unions NSW’s Mark Morey said workers were fed up with the steady erosion of their living conditions and excuses doled out for why pay packets couldn’t increase.
– AAP
