Expect chaos at Australian airports on Aug 12 as border & immigration workers strike

Departing airline passengers hug relatives and friends before entering the departures area at Sydney International Airport, Australia, November 8, 2015. Reuters/David Gray

Australians who have travel plans on Aug 12 are advised of possible long lines and chaos because of a looming border and immigration workers' strike. The planned job walk off by members of the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) is over an ongoing pay dispute.

News.com.au reports that union members would strike on Friday for 24 hours at international airports and ports across Australia. However, quarantine and biosecurity workers would walk off their jobs on the same day but for one hour only.

While warning passengers of potential delays and disruption, the CPSU assured the public the gateways’ counter-terrorism and intelligence officers will not be affected by the industrial action. Nadine Flood, CPSU national secretary, says, “Despite Border Force’s cynical tactics in the Fair Work Commission prior to the election, our members are 100 per cent committed to national security and their action will not compromise the safety of passengers in any way.”

The CPSU informed the Department of Immigration and Border Security of their job walk off to protest the continuing enterprise bargaining deadlock that has dragged for almost three years, according to the Canberra Times. Several tries to break the deadlock and a series of failed votes resulted in 75 percent of the Commonwealth’s 150,000 public employees lacking an enterprise bargaining agreement.

The largest departments in the Commonwealth could not reach a deal with their workers as they fail to agree with union demands for workplace rights and conditions. About 60 to 70 percent of the CPSU members hold front-line airport jobs.

To break the impasse, the CPSU asked Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull for an urgent meeting. Flood says Turnbull could avert future strike action by working with the union to fix the airport mess. She adds all the airport staff wants if family-friendly conditions and fair wage outcomes since their salaries had been frozen the past three years.

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