The pilots were/are on individual agreements, as an AWA.
The AWA's were like hundreds of NJS AWA before them, and included CPI increases for salaries and allowances, based on positive movement of the CPI.
Before the 717 was introduced, the NJS pilots were placed in a tough choice. Stand their ground and be out of a job, or give a little in the short term and continue employment.
The deal eventually reached was that the first 74 onto the 717 would contribute to half the cost of endorsement via salary sacrifice. The salsac would be 15k over two years. But it would be repaid in total if the pilot served four years with NJS - 2x payments of $7,500 each on January 2008 and January 2009.
146 and 717 pilots were also asked to take a nominal $1000/$600 annual paycut during the introduction period of the 717. If both the 146 and 717 fleets would agree to this, NJS would package it as a $2000/$1200 pay reductions Capt/FO to QantasLink. Payback? Yes. Salary to be reinstated once the introduction complete, or a nine or more 717 placed on the AOC.
Long story short, NJS did not keep its end of the bargain. Pilots moving onto the 717 found that the company took more than was agreed to. Example: 717 trainees got NO RDO's during the time they spent in the sim and line training with Jetstar. In some cases this took 4 months. Some pilots are owed 30 days off at home base as clearly spelled out in their AWA. NJS refuses to honour this - "it makes no commercial sense!" despite it being a employment term that THEY wrote in.
The 146 pilots that chose not to, or could not, go across to the 717 saw what was going on and elected to stay on their 146 agreement, as was their right.
Its an individual contract, remember.
Those agreements have not expired.
However NJS argues that the bargaining agent for the 146 pilots, the NJS Pilot Group, made a new agreement to cover both the 146 and the 717, and this agreement supercedes the old.
The new agreement also has CPI, but the lower salary, which has NOT been reinstated following the 717 introduction.
The 146 pilots elected to stay on their current, valid, unexpired agreement. NJS then quietly refused to pay them their contracted CPI increase last year, and has said that it will not make any more CPI increases unless those pilots sign a 'new' AWA.
That is duress.
Problem is, that 'new' AWA has not been negotiated with anyone, let alone their nominated bagaining agent.
NJS then started going heavy on pilots for being slow to sign, wanting to amend individual terms, discuss terms when the pilots had 'accepted' AWA sight unseen.
NJS has broken the law, several laws, and the OWS is prosecuting a breach of the WorkChoices regulations.
Last edited by ITCZ; 19th Jun 2007 at 23:38.