Sydney, November 21 (IANS). The upcoming strike of railway workers has been postponed. There was widespread public concern about this because if there had been a strike, Sydney’s rail network would have come to a complete halt for several days.
The New South Wales (NSW) government announced on Thursday evening that the government has reached an agreement with the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU), Xinhua news agency quoted local media reports as saying. The strike was called due to a wage dispute affecting railway employees.
Sydney’s rail network was due to be completely closed between Friday and Sunday due to the proposed RTBU strike. The employees union had earlier planned to extend the network shutdown from Thursday to Sunday. But as talks continued between the state government and the union, it was postponed for a day.
After meeting with the state government on Thursday (November 21), the RTBU agreed to hold the work action for two weeks. During this period, talks will continue on a permanent solution to the dispute.
In return, the New South Wales Government agreed to run limited 24-hour rail services this weekend.
During the talks between the government and the union, making 24-hour rail service permanent has been the main demand of the union. But the government has argued that doing so could cause the entire network to fail.
NSW Premier Chris Minns told reporters after a meeting with the RTBU on Thursday that he hoped to reach a permanent agreement in the next two weeks to avoid any disruption to Sydney’s rail network. “Intensive discussions will begin between the government and unions in New South Wales over the next two weeks, with the aim of bringing all parties together to reach an agreement between the unions covering rail in the state that will last for several years,” he said. “
–IANS
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