
Issue No 71		15 September 2000

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Better Pay, Big Screens and Ice Cream for Bus 2000 Drivers

By Scott Connolly

Bus 2000 drivers were sharing a room with up to 7 other drivers and receiving little more than a bottle of drink and an apple to sustain them after a twelve hour shift the Transport Workers Union found earlier this week.

But after a week of delays and continued disruptions the Bus 2000 Olympic Fleet's provision of transport services to the Sydney Olympic Games is beginning to improve.

Discussions involving the drivers, Bus 2000 and the Olympic Roads and Traffic Authority have led to improved .working conditions and accommodation for drivers and better rostering arrangements.

A new set of rosters has been introduced, drivers are being provided with one hot and one cold meal a day, and an additional team of 13 drivers liaison officers are continuing to investigate alternative arrangements for drivers accommodation.

In addition drivers rostered on the difficult routes in the CBD and to the Media depot will be receiving an extra $4 per hour and all drivers will be paid at ordinary time if they have to wait for a shuttle bus or are travelling more than one hour.

To ensure drivers also have the opportunity to enjoy the site and spectacle of the games the TWU has secured a commitment from ORTA and Bus 2000 that large TV screens and ice cream vans will be stationed at the major depots.

Welcoming these developments TWU State Secretary Tony Sheldon told Workers Online, "Things are definitely improving and these announcements certainly go some way to allaying drivers concerns, ultimately, however now it is really up to Bus 2000 to deliver on its commitment to make the provision of games transport services a success."

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Issue 71 contents

Interview: Surviving The Firestorm
After several years as the focus of some brutal politics Carmen Lawrence is back on the ALP front bench. She talks to Workers Online about her new portfolio, unions and the ALP and mud slinging in politics.

History: Unions, Sport and Community
Remember when sport was a fun way to relax after arduous labour? The fight for the eight-hour work day was based around a slogan that said, in part, eight hours work, eight hours play. The play was unpaid and unsung, but enjoyable.

Politics: Global Failures
Sharan Burrow told the World Economic Forum this week that the union movement acknowledges the benefits of globalisation but it's time to address the failures.

International: Mobile Workers
A global IT labour shortage is throwing up challenges for both the developed and developing world. Gerd Rohde, from the Geneva-based Union Network International, is working to strike a balance.

Unions: Stuffed or Stoned?
In a recent dispute at the South Blackwater Coal Mine in Central Queensland CFMEU members resisted the introduction of random drug testing in the absence of a better strategy to test impairment and not just lifestyle.

Review: A Perfect Circle- Mer de Noms
Peter Zangari believes the music world has moved on from the simplistic chords of Nirvana and Soundgarden and the grunge scene has been obliterated. But like most other things, especially music, it re-invents itself.

Satire: Silly 2000
Editors demand something happen: �We�ve got 300 Olympic pages to fill and everyone is training�.

» Protesting Posties Blast Bosses in Swank Hotel

» Mario Carries Torch For Workers

» Union Flag Flies High At Olympic Park

» International Passport for IT Workers

» Homecarers Strike Another Blow Against Outsourcing

» Alliances The Legacy of S11 Say Protestors

» Violence Rife Against Union Activists

» Call Centre Workers Compo Call Answered

» Better Pay, Big Screens and Ice Cream for Bus 2000 Drivers

» 'Appalling' Detention Centres Behind Riots

» Election of Burmese Official A Slap In The Face

» Away For The Games

» Sport

» Labour Review

» Tool Shed

» Listen To The Young

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