Aurizon faces more industrial action

Unions have again informed Australian rail operator Aurizon of plans for industrial action, after a new proposed staff enterprise employment agreement failed to obtain sufficient support.

The latest planned industrial action in Queenslands comes after a previous strike ended on 7 July, and more could follow if the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) continues to reject the proposals put forward by Aurizon.

All network controllers that are members of the RTBU will stop work on all control boards for a 24-hour period starting from 10 July 04:00. Rolling stoppages will also start on 12 July through to 14 July. This will include a ban on overtime by network controllers working on all control boards and who are members of the RTBU.

Aurizon has assured customers that their network boards can still be staffed for the entire period of the strike, but "rail operators may experience some transactional delays in obtaining authorities for travel across the network".

"Aurizon was offering wage increases at 2pc per year for four years and changes to conditions better aligned to competitors and industry," Aurizon said. But this has been rejected by RTBU on the grounds that Aurizon's offers on pay increases were previously at 4pc.

The rail operator has been plagued with problems since early this year as the Queensland Competition Authority set limits on its revenue. This has forced the firm to make changes to its maintenance schedule and reducing rail haulage volumes as a result, alienating producers dependent on the rail systems to transport coal.

Coking coal market participants have remained unmoved by the latest possible industrial action, as demand for coking coal remains muted amid the typical slow season for steel production in China and India.