Penalty rates for retail workers in balance
It has been six months since trolley collector Duncan Hart and unionist Josh Cullinan launched a legal challenge against Coles supermarkets, one of the largest corporations in Australia. Hart and Cullinan, with the assistance of pro-bono barrister Siobhan Kelly, are seeking to overturn the 2015 national workplace agreement struck by Coles and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association, the union that covers Coles employees.
According to their case, the deal is so rotten that it leaves thousands of Coles workers worse off than if they were paid under the basic award. If they’re right, the agreement should be quashed. Australia’s current industrial relations laws require that enterprise agreements leave workers “better off” than the award.
On 28 and 29 April, the Fair Work Commission heard closing submissions from both sides. The hearing room was packed. Coles’ lawyers implored the commission to ignore the evidence – real rosters of real Coles workers – submitted by Hart and Cullinan in favour of confected rosters submitted by Coles.
Kelly pointed out that the workers that Coles claims would be better off would be so only if they received carer’s leave, emergency services leave, natural disaster leave, blood donor leave, compassionate leave, defence services leave and be made redundant. All in one year.
To this, Coles and the SDA could barely muster a serious reply. Though it was argued that there is an “intangible”, non-monetary value in being a Coles employee which must also be taken into account.
The commission’s decision on the legality of the deal is expected within weeks. Hart is confident. Speaking to Red Flag he said that he hoped the agreement would be struck out, giving Coles workers a chance to bargain again on their own terms.
“If the Commission found in our favour, it would have huge implications for other retail agreements”, he said. “Hopefully, it will make Coles workers think about how we got into such a situation and about what we can do to challenge our union’s cosy relationship with the company.
