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Worker transfer scheme transfers the painThe Andrews Labor Government’s scheme to transfer workers from the former Hazelwood power station is not creating new jobs in the industrial sector of the Latrobe Valley. By Portal Admin - 22nd September 2017 - Back to News "The Andrews Labor Government’s scheme to transfer workers from the former Hazelwood power station is not creating new jobs in the industrial sector of the Latrobe Valley; it is just pushing the pain of job losses sideways and onto others."
That’s the view of The Nationals’ Member for Eastern Victoria Melina Bath, who spoke in parliament this week to raise the plight of a number of sub-contractors who recently have had their contracts ceased after working for lead contractors at Loy Yang many years.
"A number of long-term workers at Loy Yang have found themselves out of work as a result, and Hazelwood and internal workers are taking up their existing roles at the plant."
Ms Bath says Loy Yang operator AGL has potentially been incentivised by funding assistance through the Worker Transfer Scheme, announced by the Andrews Government in May 2017.
Ms Bath provided the example of Tony Moretti, who had worked at Loy Yang under a sub-contract arrangement for more than a decade.
"Mr Tony Moretti is a case in point," she continued in parliament.
"Mr Moretti has worked at the Loy Yang mine as a planning coordinator and as a planner for the past 11 years."
"Mr Moretti was told to apply for his former position as planning coordinator and was unsuccessful in that interview. He was also told to apply for the planner position, which he had been doing for many years. Again he was unsuccessful. Now he is out of a job."
Ms Bath emphasised that neither she nor the dislodged Loy Yang workers begrudged former Hazelwood workers securing jobs at Loy Yang.
"They are experiencing great frustration and anxiety as a result of being shunted sideways. All have commented to me that they do not begrudge the Hazelwood workers applying for these positions."
Ms Bath said she had raised their plight to ask the Andrews Labor Government to support them in some way by allowing them to be added to the Jobs Victoria Employment Network program.
Speaking outside parliament, Ms Bath said this a genuinely difficult situation for workers.
"Daniel Andrews promised he ‘will always stand up for the Latrobe Valley', but a one-for-one trade is an insult that pits worker against worker. The situation for sub-contract workers hadn’t been considered in the rush to get the Hazelwood worker transfer scheme up and running and off the front page of the newspapers."
"The thing now is to fix this. That’s why I’ve raised this in parliament. I've asked the Minister for Industry and Employment Wade Noonan to put these former sub-contract workers onto the Jobs Victoria Employment Network list so that they can be prioritised to get back into the workforce, as they want and deserve," she concluded.
Media contact: Shaun Lennard 0417 589 091
Source: http://gippsland.com/ Published by: support@gippsland.com
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