Council CEO wouldn't be able to 'look staff in the eye' if wages were at risk

The on-going saga lead to Australian Service Union members taking industrial action after months of negotiations for a new Enterprise Agreement.

This round of industrial action ended at midnight, Wednesday May 23 but the union will vote on whether to undertake further industrial action.

Council staff voted down the first enterprise agreement offer from council management and voted to take industrial action.

Dozens gathered outside the Ballarat Town Hall ahead of the council meeting, with a clear message - "fair pay for fair work".

One was parking officer Jase Goldsmith, who has worked for City of Ballarat council for 25 years.

He and his wife, who works full time, have had to cut back to make ends meet but do their best to get by every fortnight and care for their two children.

Mr Goldsmith is permanent part-time, works 5.5 hours a day, and cares for his teenage children.

"We're just not keeping our head above water," he said.

"Costs have increased and they keep increasing."

Mr Goldsmith said their wages go into the bills and nothing else.

"We don't do anything as a family, we're just trying to get through the fortnight with school and the weekly shopping," he said.

Recently, Mr Goldsmith had to use his savings for medical bills for one of his children and repair the two family cars.

"That's gone now, it might have been a holiday," he said.

"We want a fair and equitable wage where you have have a bit of money at the end of the fortnight to put away for savings."

Despite working for the council for 25 years, Mr Goldsmith said he would consider leaving.

"But I don't have the skill base to go anywhere else," he said.

"It's a rock and a hard place."

Mr Goldsmith said it was "very disappointing" council weren't trying to value its staff.

Lead ASU organiser Zoe Edwards said they weren't "backing down".

"We're going to keep the pressure on," she said.

"We'll be meeting with members Tuesday next week and they'll be voting on whether or not we accept the latest offer."

Should more industrial action be supported by union members, then it is likely more work bans will be undertaken.

The union has repeatedly asked why the council cannot used "saved" funds from staff vacancies to pay the increase, which council management have said wasn't viable in the long run.

"There's an extra $2 million available that's been saved on employee entitlements, they're (councillors) voting tonight to spend that money on upgrading a hockey pitch," Ms Edwards said.

"We want to ask council to use that money on their frontline workers who are paid between $58,000 to $60,000 on average and who need a fair pay rise. The council are losing workers to Bendigo and Geelong because the wages aren't high enough. The cost of living crisis is hurting our members and they need a fair pay rise."

After voting for industrial action May 2, actions included work bans on issuing parking fines and cleaning up some streets.

The current offer put forward to council staff, and voted down by ASU representatives, offers a 3.5 per cent pay increase, or $43 a week, whichever was higher for the first year, then 3.5 per cent or $45 a week for the second year and 3.5 per cent or $47 a week, whichever was higher, for year three.

The union is pushing for five per cent increase for their first year, backdated to September 2023 when the last EBA expired, and six per cent for the following two years in the agreement.

The ASU claimed the first offer in March would have left some Ballarat council staff the lowest paid in Victoria.

During the council meeting on Wednesday, Councillor Daniel Moloney wanted to know what the variables have been over the past four years when it came to savings due to staff vacancies, and if funds could be used for wages and not for projects like the hockey pitch.

In 2019-20 there was an overspend on wages of $21,000, and in the following years there were savings - in 2020-21, $1 million, 2021-22 $7 million and in 2022-23 $3 million - a total variable for staff vacancies of $10.98 million over four years.

Council's chief executive Evan King said risking the use of wage variances to pay staff was putting the council at a risk of being unable to pay wages should things shift.

Mr King said he wouldn't be able to "look staff in the eye" and say it was down to a variable if they could be paid or not.

"it's an incredibly dangerous way of running a business," he said.

After the meeting, mayor Des Hudson said savings from wages was never "absolute".

"Our employee number can change in the year," he said.

"Capital projects can overrun and being completely transparent with the community showing where some funds can be utilised and invested back into capital."