Workers have been locked out of a dairy processing plant in Echuca as part of an industrial dispute.
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Parmalat Australia, who owns the plant, confirmed that members of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union began industrial action in the form of work bans.
The bans are part of negotiations to develop a new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement for the workers.
“Parmalat is disappointed the AMWU and CEPU has decided to commence industrial action in light of the six months of good faith negotiations which Parmalat has participated in to date,” a spokesperson said.
“As a result, we have had to make the tough decision to close the site indefinitely.
“Parmalat has also undertaken the necessary steps to ensure no customers will be impacted by the industrial action.
“We believe the current offer is fair and reasonable and we are committed and ready to further discuss the benefits of the packaged offer in order to reach a resolution.”
The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union slammed Parmalat’s decision to lock out its Echuca workforce this morning.
“Parmalat’s actions today are outrageous and extreme,” AMWU National Food Secretary Tom Hale said.
“The workers are simply exercising a legal right to take protected industrial action in response to the company’s efforts to tear up their existing agreement and attack their permanent jobs and their wages and conditions.”
Workers at the Echuca yoghurt-making facility have been in negotiations with Parmalat for their new enterprise agreement since August last year and are keen to maintain their industry standard existing wages and conditions.
In November, the company applied to tear up the existing agreement to cut the workers’ wages in half, increase the length of their working week, and gut redundancy provisions.
In response, the workers voted to take legally-protected industrial action.
“These Echuca workers just want a fair agreement with the same permanent, full time jobs, and wages and conditions that they have today,” Mr Hale said.
“Instead they have been met by this heavy-handed response from the company, when they could just be getting back to the table to negotiate a good outcome for everybody.”