The Regulator Has Failed Railway Workers In late July members received a message from NSW Trains management celebrating the New Intercity Fleet receiving accreditation from the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR). This is an appalling failure of the agency tasked with keeping the railways safe. ONRSR have ignored the RTBU The RTBU has notified the Regulator that we have not been notified nor consulted with in relation to the changes to NSW Trains’ accreditation. We also provided the regulator with documents and reports that demonstrate that the operating model is unsafe for passengers, particularly children and other vulnerable people. We have written to ONRSR SEVEN times and received NO RESPONSE Under the Rail Safety National Law, NSW Trains had a clear obligation to consult with the RTBU on changes to the
accreditation process, but it has failed to do so. Remember, we wrote to ONRSR seven times.
still won’t fix a simple issue that would allow a Guard to ensure the safe operation of trains on the network as they do today.
Federal Court Proceedings While NSW Trains and the NSW Government were making announcements of this nature, they were in the Federal Court seeking an injunction trying to force members to crew the NIF. NSW Trains has also made an undertaking to the Federal Court that if any member refuses to board the NIF on safety grounds before the matter is resolved will not face any adverse impacts.
What happens next Whereas the NSW Government and NSW Trains seem to be making decisions based on ego and trying to justify their shonky overseas purchase, we know that RTBU members’ decisions will always be about safety. The safety of members and the travelling public is our priority. Members will do whatever is necessary to ensure our railways are safe.
The Fine Print Although the announcement implies that the NIF is safe and that is the end of the story, there is further detail that has been glossed over. NSW Trains has only been accredited to run the NIF between Newcastle and Sydney Terminal and only with a second safety qualified person on the train. It is unfathomable that NSW Trains
For safety, every single time. See related article on Federal Court win below.
NIF Update: Another Win for Safety In August our Legal Team was at work in the Federal Court of Australia, where NSW Trains made a desperate and last ditch effort to force members to staff a proven unsafe train, and we won. In a stunning win for safety, the Federal Court rejected NSW Trains’ application to force changes to working practices and arrangements proposed to allow for the introduction of the New Intercity Fleet (NIF). We are still working through the judgement, but we won on every point: Meaning: • The Federal Court found that changing the working arrangement for Drivers and Guards would be an extra claim and not permitted. • The Federal Court dismissed in full NSW Trains application meaning they cannot force you to crew the NIF.
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This is a significant win in a fight that we should never have had to have. Since the judgement arrived, we have not heard from NSW Trains, TfNSW or the Government so members need to be on high alert for any suspicious activity in relation to NIF readiness activities. If you see something, make sure you let your delegate know. Nevertheless, NSW Trains’ have undertaken to not take any adverse action against any worker who refuses to board the NIF. The fight for a safe operating model on the NIF is far from over, but we have NSW Trains on the ropes and are prepared to do whatever it takes to finish this fight. NSW Trains did not appeal the Federal Court judgement, so we await their next move.
RAIL & ROAD September 2021
