West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 2003

WEST AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPERS PRODUCTION EMPLOYEES (ENTERPRISE BARGAINING) AGREEMENT 2003

No: AG 216 of 2003

1TITLE

This Agreement shall be referred toas the West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 2003.

2ARRANGEMENT

1Title

2Arrangement

3Application of Agreement

4Parties Bound

5Date and Operation

6Number of Employees Bound

7Single Bargaining Unit

8Relationship to Parent Awards and Previous Enterprise Bargaining Agreements

9Aim of This Agreement

10Dispute Settlement Procedure

11Introduction of Change Procedure

12Redundancies

13New Rosters and Departmental Initiatives

14Shift Loading

15Sick Leave Incentive

16Annual Leave

17Wage Increases

18Superannuation – Salary Sacrifice

19Maternity Leave/Parental Leave

20Bereavement Leave

21 Trade Union Training

22Reasonable Overtime

23No Extra Claims

24Leave Reserved Matters

Schedule A – Rates of Pay

Schedule B – Electrical Department Rosters

Schedule C – Mechanical Department Rosters

Schedule D – Press Room Rosters

Schedule E – Publishing Rosters

Schedule F – Pre Press Rosters

Schedule G – Graphics Department Rosters

Schedule H – Production Services Rosters

Schedule I – Examples of basic black border advertisements

1

3APPLICATION OF AGREEMENT

This Agreement shall apply at the establishments of West Australian Newspapers Limited in respect of all employees who are engaged in any of the occupations, industries or callings specified in the Printing (Newspaper) Award 1979, the Electrical, Engineering and Building Trades (West Australian Newspapers) Award 1988 and the Security Officers and Cleaners (West Australian Newspapers) Award 1992.

4PARTIES BOUND

-West Australian Newspapers Limited

50 Hasler Road, OSBORNE PARK WA 6017

-The Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union of Workers, Western Australian Branch

121 Royal Street, EASTPERTH, WA 6004

-Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Workers' Union of Australia - Engineering & Electrical Division - WA Branch

Unit 24, 257 Balcatta Road, BALCATTA, WA 6021

-The Construction, Mining, Forestry, Energy

Union of Workers

27 Moore Street, EASTPERTH WA 6004

5DATE AND OPERATION

This Agreement shall operate from the beginning of the first pay period commencing on or after 1 April 2003 and shall remain in force for a period of three years until 31 March 2006. Discussions between the Company and the employees will commence not later than three (3) months before the expiry date of this Agreement.

This Agreement shall not be cancelled or varied unless agreed to by the parties.

6NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES BOUND

Approximately 435 employees are bound by this Agreement.

7SINGLE BARGAINING UNIT

A single bargaining unit has been created in accordance with the State Wage Case Principles. This unit, on behalf of their members, negotiated this Agreement with the Company.

8RELATIONSHIP TO PARENT AWARDS AND PREVIOUS ENTERPRISE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS

1. Except where specifically provided for in this Agreement, this Agreement shall be read and interpreted wholly in conjunction with the Printing (Newspaper) Award 1979, the Electrical Engineering and Building Trades (West Australian Newspapers) Award 1988 and the Security Officers and Cleaners (West Australian Newspapers) Award 1992, whichever is the relevant award.

Where there is any inconsistency between this Agreement and the said parent award(s), this Agreement shall prevail to the extent of any inconsistency.

1. The following agreements shall not be cancelled by the registration of this Agreement and their provisions shall be saved:

• West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1992 – AG10 of 1992
• West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1993 - AG44 of 1993
• West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1995 - AG259 of 1995
• West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1997 – AG122 of 1997
• West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 2000 – AG157 of 2000
• West Australian Newspapers (Enterprise Bargaining) Security Officers and Cleaners Agreement 1992 - AG 22 of 1992
• West Australian Newspapers (Enterprise Bargaining) Security Officers and Cleaners Agreement 1994 - AG 106 of 1994
• West Australian Newspapers (Enterprise Bargaining) Security Officers and Cleaners Agreement 1995 - AG 6 of 1996
• West Australian Newspapers Security Officers and Cleaners (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1997 - AG 199 of 1997
• West Australian Newspapers Security Officers (Enterprise Bargaining) (Interim) Agreement 1999 - AG 120 of 1999
• West Australian Newspapers Security Officers and Cleaners (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 2000 - AG 27 of 2001
• All other current orders of the West Australian Industrial Relations Commission.

Where there is any inconsistency between any two Agreements or orders, including this Agreement, then the most current Agreement or order shall prevail.

“Leave Reserved” matters of any previous agreement shall not apply.

It is agreed to incorporate the provisions of Attachment 1, from AG44 of 1993 into this Agreement.

9AIM OF THIS AGREEMENT

The aim of this Agreement is to continue to consolidate the shared benefits that the parties have gained from previous Enterprise Agreements. For this reason the increases provided for under this Agreement are provided on the basis that the parties are prepared to continue to make real and demonstrable changes in both attitudes and the way in which work is performed to facilitate further improvements in productivity and efficiency. These changes will enable the Company to achieve a fuller and more productive utilisation of its resources in the future.

The parties agree that the Production Division operates in an increasingly competitive environment. The changes contained in this Agreement will assist the Production Division to more efficiently operate in this environment. In addition, further initiatives and/or changes may be required during the life of this Agreement to more effectively operate in this environment. These changes may be cultural, organisational and/or operational.

There is a clear recognition by all parties that for this Company to remain competitive it must be able to respond quickly and positively to the demands of the market and the requirements of its customers.

10DISPUTE SETTLEMENT PROCEDURE

The parties are committed to observing the following dispute settlement procedure in respect to any questions, difficulties or disputes arising under this Agreement.

(1)In the event of any proposed change in employment conditions or terms of this Agreement, or in the event of any question or dispute arising, the parties will consult together to reach a settlement.

(2)The principle of conciliation and direct negotiation shall be adopted for the purpose of prevention and settlement of any industrial dispute that may arise.

(3)The parties shall take an early and active part in the discussions and negotiations aimed at preventing or settling disputes in accordance with the agreed procedure set out hereunder.

(4)The employee, the union representative, the supervisor and the Department Manager shall confer, and where possible, resolve the issue.

(a)If not resolved, the union representative shall confer with the Human Resources Manager, on this matter, and where possible, resolve the issue.

(b)If not resolved, the Union and the union representative shall confer with the Human Resources Manager on the matter, and where possible, resolve the matter.

(c)If the matter is still not settled, either party shall submit the matter for conciliation/arbitration by the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission.

(5)Until the matter is resolved in accordance with the above procedure or determined by the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission, all work shall continue normally as was the case prior to the dispute. While the above procedure is being followed, no party shall be prejudiced as to the final settlement by the continuation of work in accordance with this procedure.

(6)All parties to the Agreement, the Company, its officials, the Union[s] and their members, will take all possible action to settle any dispute within seven days of notification of the dispute to the Human Resources Manager.

(7)All reasonable attempts must be made to resolve matter[s] in dispute prior to referring the matter[s] to the WAIRC.

11INTRODUCTION OF CHANGE PROCEDURE

The Production Division needs to use the most efficient and effective way to meet production requirements. From time to time it will be necessary to introduce change – including alter hours of work, existing rosters, and/or work arrangements. In the event that it is necessary to introduce change the parties will follow this Introduction of Change Procedure.

In the first instance, the Department Manager will advise their employees why it is necessary to introduce the change. The Manager will also advise what effect these changes may have on the employees, and what steps have been taken to reduce/minimise these effects. The Manager will give the employees reasonable time to discuss and consider the proposed change[s].

In the event that the employees suggest an alternative way to introduce the change it will be considered by the Manager to see whether the alternative provides an efficient and effective way to meet production requirements.

The purpose of this meeting is twofold. The first is to provide the Manager with an opportunity to explain the reason[s] why it is necessary to introduce change. The second is to provide the employees with an opportunity to discuss the proposed changes which will [where applicable] include but not be limited to rosters, hours of work, shift penalties etc.

It is anticipated that the Manager and the employees will endeavour to reach agreement on these changes.

In the event that the Department Manager and the employees are unable to reach agreement on these changes, the parties have agreed to use the Dispute Settlement Procedure to resolve the matter.

Until the matter is resolved in accordance with the Dispute Settlement Procedure contained in this Agreement or determined by the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission, all work shall continue normally as was prior to the proposed changes.

12REDUNDANCIES

As part of this agreement, the parties agree to the following voluntary redundancies:

Electrical 2 employees plus 3 employees during the term of the Agreement

Mechanical9 employees

Pre Press 2 employees plus 1 employee during the term of the Agreement

Production Services11 employees

The company has received sufficient applications from employees to cover these redundancies (not including the three additional Electrical redundancies and one additional Pre Press redundancy).

Employees who have accepted voluntary redundancy, as part of this agreement, will receive a severance payment of 4 weeks pay for each completed year of service. In the event of an incomplete year of service, employees will receive 1 weeks pay for each three months of service.

Production Services employees who accept voluntary redundancy, as part of this agreement, will also receive a Vocational Reskilling Payment of $42,000 less any applicable taxation.

For the purposes of the severance calculation, shift and weekend penalty payments will be averaged over the previous five years service for Production Services employees and the previous one years service for other employees.

Production and operational requirements will determine the timing of all redundancies.

13NEW ROSTERS AND DEPARTMENTAL INITIATIVES

The parties agree to implement new rosters. The timing of the implementation of the new rosters will be at the discretion of the company but no later than six weeks from the registration of the Agreement.

With regard to future roster changes, the parties agree to use the procedures in Clause 11 – Introduction of Change Procedure of this Agreement.

1. Electrical Department

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule B.

(b)It is agreed that while this roster is in operation, employees will work a 36-hour week (4x9) with no Accrued Day Off (ADO). It is further agreed that if the parties revert to a five day roster, the hours of work and ADO arrangements that existed prior to this Agreement shall apply.

(c)Where rostered day shifts of ordinary time are worked on a Sunday and Saturday in the same pay week, the weekend payment shall be normal time, plus 25% weekend penalties, plus payment of $275.00 in lieu of any other loading for that week. The $275.00 payment shall increase to $286.00 on 1 April 2004 and $297.00 on 1 April 2005.

The $275.00 payment will not be paid if both days are not worked due to sick leave that is not supported by a medical certificate. In the event that only one day is worked due to sick leave that is not supported by a medical certificate then one half of the $275.00 payment will be made.

The normal practice of not accepting backdated medical certificates shall apply.

For the purposes of this sub clause “pay week” shall mean Sunday to Saturday.

(d)The parties agree that employees shall make themselves available to perform all types of work on all shifts within their range of skill and competency. For the avoidance of doubt this includes:

1. All work prescribed within the Award and Agreements reached; and
2. Preventative maintenance on shift.

(e)The parties agree to revert to the no automatic replacement provisions of the West Australian Newspapers Production Employees (Enterprise Bargaining) Agreement 1993 - AG44 of 1993.

(f)The parties agree that the establishment of a C8 to C5 Classification structure and agreed rates of pay, as part of this Agreement, resolves all relativities claims. The company agrees to expedite assessment of existing C8 employees by 31 December 2003 and, where appropriate, progress to C7 or establish a training plan to facilitate such progression.

1. Mechanical Department

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule C.

(b)It is agreed that while this roster is in operation, employees will work a 36-hour week (4x9) with no Accrued Day Off (ADO). It is further agreed that if the parties revert to a five day roster, the hours of work and ADO arrangements that existed prior to this Agreement shall apply.

(c)Where rostered day shifts of ordinary time are worked on a Sunday and Saturday in the same pay week, the weekend payment shall be normal time, plus 25% weekend penalties, plus payment of $275.00 in lieu of any other loading for that week. The $275.00 payment shall increase to $286.00 on 1 April 2004 and $297.00 on 1 April 2005.

The $275.00 payment will not be paid if both days are not worked due to sick leave that is not supported by a medical certificate. In the event that only one day is worked due to sick leave that is not supported by a medical certificate then one half of the $275.00 payment will be made.

The normal practice of not accepting backdated medical certificates shall apply.

For the purposes of this sub clause “pay week” shall mean Sunday to Saturday.

(d)The parties agree that employees shall make themselves available to perform all types of work on all shifts within their range of skill and competency. For the avoidance of doubt this includes:

1. All work prescribed within the Award and Agreements reached; and
2. Preventative maintenance on shift.

1. Press Room

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule D.

(b)The parties agree that the 32-hour week, as presented on the roster, applies because of application of Clause 14(8) of the Award. The 32-hour week will only apply while this Award condition is met.

(c)The parties will honour the existing agreement to run short on the manning scale if efforts to find replacements are exhausted.

1. Publishing

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule E.

(b)Line and Bridge Supervisors shall receive the same daily margin as a press foreperson, on a Friday night only.

1. Pre Press

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule F.

1. Graphics Department

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule G.

1. Production Services

(a)The roster shall be as detailed in Schedule H.

(b)The parties agree to adopt a 36-hour week/19 Day Month working arrangement from the commencement of the new roster.

(c)The parties agree that:

1. Call Centre staff shall be able to format all basic black border advertisements containing text and logos as per the examples in Schedule I.
2. Production Services staff shall continue to accept e-mail and interactive PDF copy.
3. Variable length days can be introduced within Award parameters.

14 SHIFT LOADING

Shift loading shall be as follows:

Night Shift (Based on Award Definitions) 25%

Intermediate Shift/Afternoon Shift (Based on Award Definitions)22.5%

Shift loading increases for Security Officers shall apply from 1 July 2003.

15SICK LEAVE INCENTIVE

The parties agree to work together to reduce absenteeism.

A sick leave incentive system will be introduced for all full time and part time employees to operate for 12 months from 1 July 2003. The company will review the system and subject to its effectiveness a further period of 12 months will be considered/implemented. The incentive will be as follows less any applicable taxation:

0 sick days not supported by a medical certificate$200

1 sick day not supported by a medical certificate $150

2 sick days not supported by a medical certificate $100

3 sick days not supported by a medical certificate $50

4 or more sick days not supported by a medical certificate $0

16ANNUAL LEAVE

Employees may take up to one week of their Annual Leave entitlement each year as single days subject to production requirements and the approval of the manager/supervisor.

The parties agree that it is not the intention of this clause, this Agreement or the new rosters to increase or decrease the existing leave entitlements.

17WAGE INCREASES

In recognition of this Agreement and the potential to further increase productivity and efficiency the parties have agreed to the following increases in wages:

All Employees except Security Officers

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 April 2003;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 April 2003;

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 April 2004;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 April 2004;

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 April 2005;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 April 2005.

Security Officers

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 July 2003;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 July 2003;

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 July 2004;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 July 2004;

-3% from first pay period on or after 1 July 2005;

-1% productivity payment from first pay period on or after 1 July 2005.

The rates of pay are contained in Schedule A.

These wage increases will not be absorbed into over award payments.

RESPONSIBILITY PAYMENT INCREASES

The Responsibility Payment of the Electrical, Engineering & Building Trades (West Australian Newspapers) Award - Schedule 1(3) will be increased as follows: