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Category: Government and Politics / States and Territories / Unions / Road Transport / Rail Transport / Transport

SA Government 'wasted' $150,000 on consultants during pay negotiations: Opposition

Tuesday, 3 Jan 2017 06:37:23

The dispute between the Government and the union started in 2014 and ended last month. (ABC News: Candice Marcus)

The South Australian Government spent about $150,000 paying independent consultants to deal with train driver enterprise agreement negotiations on behalf of the Transport Department, the Opposition says.

The dispute between the Government and the Rail Tram and Bus Union, which included industrial action and stop work meetings, started in 2014 and ended last month.

Freedom of Information documents obtained by the Opposition showed the head of the transport department authorised consultants to deal with all matters around the negotiations.

Opposition spokesman David Pisoni said it was ridiculous the department could not handle its own negotiations.

He questioned the skill level of the department.

"Some of the itemised accounts here are extraordinary, where the consultants themselves billed the Government for talking to each other on the phone, $3.50 a minute," he said.

"It's just [an] extraordinary amount of money being spent on work that should've been done inside the department.

"Something as basic as an enterprise bargaining agreement … remember these happen every three years, this one was overdue, the skills should be within the department and certainly with the chief executive officer to manage the situation."

But Acting Transport Minister Peter Malinauskas said the expense was not a waste of taxpayers' money.

"These were particularly complex negotiations with multiple parties," Mr Malinauskas said.

"To be able to acquire the services of an industrial relations expert put the Government and the taxpayer in a better position to be able to make sure we're getting the outcome that I think all South Australians want."

AustraliaPlus


 

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