Pay Dispute Threatens To Halt Harness Racing: Stipes To Strike

The following article regarding planned industrial action by AWU Stewards was written by journalist Adam Hamilton in the Herald Sun newspaper on March 29, 2008.

HARNESS Racing Victoria stewards will go on strike from Wednesday in a move that could force the abandonment of race meetings.

The industrial action stems from a pay dispute and the 14 stewards are members of the Australian Workers Union, which says the strike will cost the industry tens of thousands of dollars per meeting that is lost.

The strike action threatens the huge Mildura Cup carnival, which includes a meeting on Wednesday night and culminates with the cup final next Saturday night.

AWU state secretary Cesar Melham said strike action was the last option for the 14 angry and frustrated stewards.

Melham revealed a strike was averted at last month's Inter Dominion Carnival when HRV reached an in-principal agreement with the AWU for a wage increase.

``Our stewards accepted that deal and in good faith averted their industrial action at the Inter Dominion, only to be double-crossed after the race was run,'' Melham said.

Melham said the original agreement involved wage rises from July and August this year, but HRV had since delayed any hike until February next year.

``This will result in our members losing thousands of dollars because their wage increases will not be compounded throughout the next 12 months,'' Melham said.

HRV chief executive John Anderson played down the situation.

``The substance of the AWU's complaint seems to be in the timing of the increased payments, not the quantum,'' Anderson said.

``The first payment will be made when the new agreement comes into force with further payments following, not in February next year as the AWU says in its release.

``The dispute is over a minor technical matter and as such the action contemplated in the release seems to be extreme. We encourage the union to reconsider.''

The Herald Sun understands HRVs chairman of stewards Alan Pearson and its head of integrity, Brant Dunshea, are not AWU members and will not be part of strike action.