Victory for Blue Ribbon workers

BY KAMALA EMANUEL

LAUNCESTON — On October 1, the Tasmanian Industrial Commission reinstated 17 workers who had been locked out of the Blue Ribbon meatworks for 182 days and ordered they be paid for wages lost as a result of the lockout.

In her judgement, commissioner Pauline Shelley noted that the Blue Ribbon abattoir and meat processing plant had been operating at the Killafaddy Road site in Launceston for many years. Workers involved in the dispute had worked there for up to 32 years. In late 2001, the plant was bought by Blue Ribbon Products and existing employees were hired by newly established labour-hire company Newemploy.

In April 2002, the workers were signed up on one-year traineeships. In the month before the completion of the traineeships, they were told their employment would cease when the traineeships ended, and that they could apply to Newemploy to become "independent contractors" under an agreement which abolished the workers' award provisions.

The workers refused to sign or signed but changed their minds when they realised that those who had refused were locked out on April 3.

The AMIEU, the meat workers' union, took the dispute to the TIC, claiming the workers had been unfairly dismissed for refusing to change their conditions of employment and seeking reinstatement and payment of back pay.

Blue Ribbon claimed that it was not the workers' employer and therefore had no responsibility to pay them if they refused to sign contracts with Newemploy. However, Shelley agreed with the union's assessment that the "independent contractor" arrangements were a "sham" and therefore not a valid reason for the workers' dismissal.

Reinstatement of the workers is due by October 22.

From Green Left Weekly, October 15, 2003.

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From GLW issue 557