Rally for public sector rights in Sydney today. Workers march past NSW Parliament House. Picture: Cameron Richardson Source: The Daily Telegraph
TENS of thousands of public sector union members marched through central Sydney yesterday to protest the O'Farrell government's decision to cap annual wage rises at 2.5 per cent and offer redundancy payouts to 5000 state workers.
Crowd estimates ranged from 15,000 to 30,000, the largest union rally in Sydney for decades. Those attending included striking maritime workers, whose action paralysed the city's ferry service, and striking teachers, who had ignored an order by the state's Industrial Relations Commission.
NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell described the ferry stoppage as an "act of bastardry", but told parliament unions were protesting a policy that was identical to that of the previous Labor government.
Unions NSW secretary Mark Lennon told the crowd in the Domain: "I stand here and see over 30,000 people from across the state in front of me who have spoken with their feet and taken action today to come here and send a very clear message to Barry O'Farrell."
Nick Train, a teacher from Parramatta, said he feared public schools would be left behind if independent and Catholic school teachers were able to negotiate better pay and conditions with their employers.
"We already have problems in the (public) system attracting and retaining staff -- this is only going to make things worse," he said.
Other teachers said they were concerned about the loss of casual staff, an increase in class sizes and the prospect of the profession failing to attract a high standard of teachers.
"The cost of living is ever-increasing and, basically, they won't be able to attract and retain talented staff," casual teacher Yasmin Maksut said. "Why should teachers and other public service workers personally pay for statewide infrastructure? Why should we personally take a cut?"
Ultimo Public School teacher Leonie Turner said: "We're not just fighting for pay. We're fighting for children's rights. Every child in Australia has the right to a free and equal education and I'm not prepared to see it go to a Third World standard."
Sam White, a hospital theatre nurse, said many blue- and pink-collar workers were as skilled as white-collar executives, and deserved to be paid accordingly. "I've been doing this for 27 years, longer than Barry (O'Farrell) has been around," Mr White said. "I spent a decade training, I do my job well and I deserve to be paid properly for it."
Firefighter Leighton Drury told the crowd Mr O'Farrell was forcing them to choose between job cuts or wage cuts: "If you're looking for a fight, Barry, well you've found one. Either change the laws or change your job."
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