“IT’S a kick in the guts”.
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That is the view of the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) following the recent decision from Murrumbidgee Irrigation (MI) to transfer around 15 of its Leeton staff to Griffith.
The union has called out MI on the issue and said both the affected employees and producers in the region weren’t happy.
AWU organiser Ron Cowdrey said the affected staff would be forced to travel a 110 kilometre round trip between Leeton and Griffith every day due to the company’s restructure.
“These workers being forced to commute long distances, with no extra pay, in their in vehicles an in their own time,” he said.
“For local producers, downgrading the Leeton office means they will not have the same level of access to highly-trained staff who manage their to day-to-day access to water.
“Instead they will also have to drive to Griffith or be satisfied with a phone call.”
MI has said it won’t be shutting the Leeton office rather moving the jobs where they were needed.
Chief executive officer Brett Jones said the region was thriving and customer’s needs were changing.
“We are changing to meet those needs and to keep this the premier irrigation district in Australia,” he said.
However, the AWU said that wasn’t good enough and MI should be held more accountable.
“This is a decision made purely for the convenience of MI’s managers, at the expense of MI workers and Leeton producers,” Mr Cowdrey said.
He believed the transfer of staff would be just the beginning, with the future of MI’s construction and water operations staff also under a cloud. Mr Cowdrey said the time for action was now.
“MI is meant to service the entire region, not just Griffith,” he said. “The company needs to reconsider this short-sighted decision to downgrade the Leeton office, and to start working constructively with its employees.”