Members studying at the tertiary level can apply for financial assistance in 2012. Download an application form including the terms and conditions here.
The close-off has been extended by one week; completed forms must reach the SDA by Friday 20 January 2012.
The Christmas 2011 and New Years public holiday trading hour guides are now available! These guides cover areas like penalty rates, restricted trading days and which days work is on a voluntary basis.
SDA Members can access these guides by following these links and logging in.
The Full Bench of Fair Work Australia has rejected an appeal by the SDA against an application by retail employers to reduce the minimum shift for a school students engaged as casuals.
Currently, the General Retail Award provides that the minimum casual shift is three hours. However, the decision by Fair Work Australia now means that the minimum shift will be reduced to 90 minutes for secondary school students engaged as casuals employees who work on school days between 3.00pm and 6.30pm . The change will not take effect until Fair Work Australia finalises its consideration of the precise text of the variation to the Award.
This decision does not directly affect SDA members who are employed under Collective Agreements negotiated by the SDA, but does affect those members who are employed under the General Retail Award.
Fair Work Australia’s decision is a big disappointment to the SDA and to all retail workers. The decision erodes the fundamental minimum shift entitlement for all employees in the retail industry. It sets a dangerous precedent for all retail employees.
The SDA will be seeking to restore the minimum shift entitlement at Fair Work Australia’s review into Modern Awards that will commence next year.
The SDA will continue to update members and Delegates of any developments in this matter. In the meantime, the most important thing you can do it to encourage your co-workers to join the SDA. This is the best way to defend and oppose any further moves to reduce working conditions in the retail industry and to act to restore the three hour casual minimum shift entitlement back into the Award.
Costco has opened its doors at two new stores in NSW and the ACT. SDA members at both stores are now busily serving customers. A warm welcome to all of our new Costco SDA members and our SDA Delegates working at both the Auburn (NSW) and Majura Park (ACT) stores.
It is an exciting time for our members and the retail industry in NSW and the ACT. Customers are now enjoying the rewarding new Costco experience. The SDA looks forward, with Costco SDA members and with Costco, to continue the rewarding Costco experience of work with first class wages and conditions.
Costco membership provides real value for consumers because of Costco’s buying power. SDA membership brings real value in the form of great wages and great savings because of our members combined bargaining power.
Congratulations to Costco and all of our Costco SDA members and Delegates on the opening of the two new stores. We look forward to seeing you in the stores. It’s great to have a friend in the workplace.
In the 2011 Annual Wage Review, Fair Work Australia has granted a 3.4% wage increase to all workers covered by a Modern Award.
The new minimum wage decision takes effect from the first pay period on or after 1 July 2011.
For retail workers in NSW and the ACT covered by the General Retail Industry Award 2010, the increases are summarised as follows:
- the weekly pay for a full time adult Retail Employee Level 1 is increased by $21.30 week (from $626.00 per week to $647.30 per week).
- the hourly pay of an adult permanent Retail Employee Level 1 is increased from $16.47 per hour to $17.03 per hour.
- Junior and casual employees receive pro-rata increases.
- Allowances increase in proportion with the wage increases.
The new adult, full time weekly rates of pay for each classification contained in the General Retail Industry Award 2010 are listed below:
- Retail Employee Level 1 – $647.30
- Retail Employee Level 2 – $662.80
- Retail Employee Level 3 – $673.10
- Retail Employee Level 4 – $686.20
- Retail Employee Level 5 – $714.50
- Retail Employee Level 6 – $724.80
- Retail Employee Level 7 – $761.00
- Retail Employee Level 8 – $792.00
Copies of the Award and pay sheets detailing the hourly rates for junior and casual employees are available to all SDA members on request.
The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is conducting the Working Australia Census 2011. This censes will be the biggest survey of union members in history and covers elements such as work conditions, work infrastructure and union activism.
This survey is a collaboration of all unions under the ACTU umbrella and the SDA heartily supports this effort.
As an incentive to participate, the ACTU is offering three $1000 gift cards as prizes to union members who participate. This survey will close on July 1 and prizes will be drawn on July 20.
The results of this census will be used to inform ongoing ACTU campaigns and help shape future policy and priorities. This is a unique opportunity to have your say about your priorities and shape the union movement’s agenda so we strongly encourage your participation!
To participate in the census, click here.
The public holiday trading hour guides for the 2011 Easter period are now available. These guides cover areas like penalty rates, restricted trading days and which days work is on a voluntary basis.
SDA Members can access these guides by following these links and logging in.
The National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) has launched Register4, Australia’s first online community for volunteer breast cancer research participants. Through this, they hope to reduce research costs spent on recruiting volunteers so that those funds can be better spent on finding better preventative measures and cures.
The SDA is proud to support the NBCF in its efforts and any SDA members who would like to come forward as a volunteer can do so by following this link.
The SDA welcomes the ACT Governments decision to declare Saturday, 25 December as an additional holiday in the ACT. This follows an extensive campaign by your union – the SDA – for public holiday reforms across the ACT and NSW. This has been supported by members and Delegates.
In March this year SDA Delegates endorsed a campaign on public holidays which included making the actual day of significance a public holiday when it falls on a weekend. Following this the SDA sought and obtained the support of Unions ACT on this critical issue for retail and service sector employees. This support resulted in direct approaches by the SDA and Unions ACT to the ACT Government.
Last night, Orange City Council overwhelmingly endorsed (9 votes to 1) the motion that:
“Council not support trading on Boxing Day”
Council allowed me to address them on behalf of SDA members on this critical issue of trading on Boxing Day, Sunday 26 December 2010. The matter was then debated in full later in the meeting. Several SDA Delegates, members and SDA Organiser Louise Buesnell attended the meeting and gave great support to the arguments against trading on Boxing Day.
Councillors Glenn Taylor, Jeff Whitton and Reg Kidd were outstanding in their support for retail workers and their families to be able to have Sunday 26 December off to enjoy a break after a peak trading period and to be able to share some time together.
As you know, there are only 4½ restricted trading days each year in NSW (Christmas day, Boxing Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and ½ day Anzac Day) and it is critical that we preserve each and every one of these.
Last night Orange City Council stood up for retail workers and their families and in doing so stood up for the Orange community.
