INDUSTRIAL relations has barely rated a mention this federal election campaign, even as Glencore Xstrata shut the gates on the Collinsville mine, spelling the end to 400 union jobs. Coal has been mined at Collinsville for more than 100 years, but now the future of a town built on mining looks terrifying for locals. Donna Bulloch runs a mining support group in Collinsville and said the town had been ripped apart by Glencore’s decision to shut the mine. Ms Bulloch said of the 400 former Thiess contractors running the mine, 190 live in Collinsville and at least 100 of those own their own homes. “You see a removalist truck every few days, and those who aren’t leaving town have their husbands living away, working at other mines,” she told the WINO. “All of a sudden we are thrown into uncertainty and people don’t know what to do. Do you sit around and wait to see what Glencore does next? “Do you pack your house up and go and and pay double rent because no-one will buy our homes here. “If the dads stay home from work and the wives look for jobs that’s no good either because no-one in town can afford to put on any staff.” What makes the Collinsville shut-down different from other mine closures and lay-offs across the Bowen Basin is that this one is marred by an ugly industrial relations stand-off between Glencore and the mining union, the CFMEU. When Glencore first announced it would run the Collinsville mine itself after its long-standing contract with Thiess expired at the end of this month, it was agreed workers would simply transition from one employer to another. But then Glencore wanted a new workplace agreement for workers - something the union maintained was not permitted under the Fair Work Act. “They wanted a greenfields agreement, but this was simply a transition of business so the current agreement still stands,” CFMEU district vice president Steve Pierce told the WINO. In a game of industrial relations hardball, Glencore then said it would shut the mine down and look at rehiring down the track. It said the mine had been losing money, and more flexible working agreements were necessary. No locals or previous employees - some of whom have worked at the pit for 17 years - are guaranteed a job or even an interview in the rehiring process. The current workforce is almost 100 per cent unionised, and locals fear they will be replaced by non-union workers from out of town. “There have been rumours the whole time that Glencore would do this - shut down the mine,” said Ms Bulloch. “We were hoping they’d have a heart and keep these guys on. But they haven’t. “People are scared and angry and uncertain. This town was built by miners for mining families. To think Glencore can come in and rip that apart.” What’s quite startling, in the middle of a federal election campaign, is how little media coverage the event has received. There have been no politicians - conservative or Labor - speaking on the issue in recent days. “I have no idea why this is not gaining attention from the media and political candidates - I gave up trying to understand politics years ago,” said Ms Bulloch. The union wants the state government to intervene. “The best option would be if the state government grew some balls and held Glencore accountable for their actions,” said the CFMEU’s Steve Pierce. When contacted by the WINO, the federal LNP candidate for Capricornia Michelle Landry said she’d visited Collinsville last month. “This will have a huge impact on the community up there and if I’m elected I would definitely talk to mine management about it,” she said. STORY - COURTESY - SHIFT MINER
Posted on: Wed, 04 Sep 2013 07:55:11 +0000
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