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The Community and Public Sector Union is making use of a crowdfunding campaign to support Immigration and Border Force workers need to they be stood down in the course of industrial action.
Border force workers are imposing perform bans from nowadays, targeting freight and cargo at ports and international mail centres.
But the union’s Nadine Flood said the immigration department had indicated it would respond by standing down workers and docking spend.
“Border force freight workers expect to be stood down without having spend by the division for taking industrial action which means properly they will be sent on strike by their boss,” she said.
“That will have an effect on goods getting into the country like parcels, mail and cargo.”
To financially support employees affected by the dispute, the union has set up a impromptu crowdfunding campaign.
“They’ve lost cash and they are heading into Christmas,” she stated.
“They’re facing the threat of the loss of further rights and pay, but also the loss of funds from industrial action, so currently hundreds of tiny donations have come in from people prepared to help these workers.
“Workers would much rather this impasse was resolved, but … we are prepared to roll out a larger effort to create support amongst the community and folks working in other industries for our members.”
Ms Flood said the campaign had gained powerful assistance from the public and workers.
“There is been a robust show of support for these workers who do a difficult job defending our borders and what they are trying to attain,” she said.
“People recognize that being stood down with out pay, just for fighting to preserve the rights and spend you’ve currently got, is a draconian tactic from Government.”
Ms Flood mentioned 92 per cent of public sector workers nevertheless did not have work spot agreements in place.
Subjects: unions, government-and-politics, canberra-2600, act