No work for 850 freight train drivers as Pacific National dispute with Rail, Tram and Bus Union cripples Hunter coal network

The dispute involving some 850 train drivers began after midnight on Wednesday night, but its impacts were dampened by an existing closure of the freight rail system between Narrabri and Newcastle, meaning that no trains were running anyway.

The Newcastle Herald was unable to obtain comment from Pacific National (PN) after this afternoon's urgent talks but a union spokesperson said the industrial action remained in place "indefinitely".

IN THE NEWS:

The only PN coal and bulk cargo trains that would run in NSW be driven by a small percentage of non-union drivers.

Pacific National (PN) is by far the biggest coal haulier in NSW, with about two-thirds of the NSW market, followed by Queensland-based Aurizon and smaller operators Southern Shorthaul and One Rail.

The dispute flared into the spotlight this morning when the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RBTU) alleged its members had been "locked out" by the employer in a similar fashion to that tried last week by tug company Svitzer.

Pacific National (PN) denied what the union called "a selective lockout", saying it encouraged its employees to "show up for work if they are willing to perform their normal duties".

But the union says those "normal duties" included driving trains were the subject of a union ban as part of protected industrial action, approved by the Fair Work Commission.

The union says its ban meant its members would not drive locomotives that were not fitted with what it regards as the requisite amount of safety equipment, such as portable warning lights, flags, wheel chocks, chains and warning detonators, which are laid on the track to make a percussive noise to warn approaching trains of danger ahead.

RBTU locomotive division secretary Farren Campbell said this equipment should be fitted to every locomotive on a multi-loco train, while the company says the union is relying on "outdated government train operating conditions to claim that certain tools are needed for continued safe operations".

"They said that if you're not going to drive everything, you're not driving any at all," Mr Campbell said, arguing that the company action was a lockout "in effect" because the drivers were stood down for refusing to follow management direction.

Pacific National said the dispute was having a state-wide impact.

"Across the state, thousands of farmers, miners, and construction workers will be adversely impacted by this action, not to mention the potential for coal shortages at power stations in the Hunter Valley and waste piling up in Sydney," a company spokesperson said.

But the impact was less than it could have been, because of scheduled maintenance by the rail track operator Australian Rail Track Corporation.

This began on Tuesday and the tracks were scheduled to reopen at 6.30am on Friday, meaning no coal or grain would have been hauled to Newcastle while the maintenance took place.

RBTU officials addressed a mass meeting of its members before noon today outside the Hunter Workers building in King Street, Newcastle, before an urgent conference upstairs at 1pm, convened by Deputy President Tony Saunders of the Fair Work Commission.

Most of the 150 or so RTBU members who had gathered for the mass meeting were still there when the Pacific National (PN) negotiating team arrived for the Fair Work conference.

Chants echoed down the Devonshire Lane alleyway, reminding the managers they were in "union" territory.

Deputy President Saunders, who a practising barrister in Newcastle before his appointment to the commission, arrived just before 1pm.

He confirmed his presence was at the request of Pacific National and was in Newcastle to assist the parties in their negotiations.

The RBTU said it and PN had been negotiating on a new enterprise agreement to replace the 2018 document, which expired in May, and which covers the company's coal and bulk cargo train drivers in NSW.

The union said PN drivers on "intermodal" trains carrying shipping containers were under a separate agreement.

Commission ballot results show 495 of 636 eligible union members took part in a June ballot proposing a range of legal or "protected" industrial action that included bans and limitations as well as outright stoppages of up to 72 hours.

A union spokesperson said an administrative problem meant that some depots were not balloted but the full number of drivers involved in the action was about 850.

Mr Campbell said the union's industrial action was part of bargaining for a new enterprise agreement, but also to "improve the working lives of our members".

With rising inflation of increasing importance in enterprise negotiations, both the union and the company say the new four-year agreement the union is seeking will result in a cumulative pay increase of 18 per cent over the four years of the agreement.

More than 93 per cent of the 495 union members who voted endorsed the industrial action.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Newcastle Herald website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.