Third strike and Adelaide trains are out again
Adelaide passenger trains will be at a standstill during this afternoon’s peak as drivers walk off the job for the third time in a week, with the Opposition calling on the state government to intervene in the dispute.
Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily
Rail Tram and Bus Union members will strike from 4pm to 6pm today, but Metro Adelaide says train services will be affected from 3pm to 7pm.
Drivers also went on strike yesterday morning and last Thursday in their campaign for a 20 per cent pay rise over four years.
Private operate Keolis Downer has offered a 14.7 per cent pay increase over four years, with the union saying yesterday the company’s refusal to lift the amount had prompted continued strikes.
“Workers never want to take industrial action like this, but they have been left with no other option to pursue their claim for a fair and reasonable pay rise,” RTBU SA/NT secretary Darren Phillips said.
“KDA has not come back to the negotiating table with a better offer, so unfortunately (Wednesday’s) industrial action planned will go ahead as planned.”
Adelaide Metro said today’s strike would likely impact services outside of the scheduled stoppage and passengers should find alternative transport for the afternoon peak hour period.
The Opposition today called on the Malinauskas Government to intervene in the dispute, saying some commuters yesterday waited at platforms unaware of the morning strike.
Liberal transport spokesman Vincent Tarzia said Keolis Downer’s contract to run Adelaide passenger trains expires next year, meaning taxpayers would later fund any pay deal agreed now.
“We know Labor ripped up the Keolis Downer contract, and that’s why it’s baffling for Peter Malinauskas and Tom Koutsantonis to wipe their hands of these important contract negotiations when 2025 is just around the corner,” Tarzia said.
“Peter Malinauskas and Tom Koutsantonis should be intervening to ensure the best and fairest deal is reached with South Australian public transport users as the priority.
“This needs to be done as quickly as possible so we don’t have a situation where commuters are waiting at stations for trains that just aren’t coming.”
A state government spokesman said the “best way for the government to influence the current situation would have been for the former Liberal government to have not sold this service into private hands”.
“It is galling for Vincent Tarzia to attempt to deflect from this disastrous decision that the Malinauskas Labor Government is now putting right,” he said.
