Keep our railway together!

By Doug Klineberg

The public meeting at Narrabri

Local delegates arranged locations for meetings and venues for showing The Navigators film, which depicts the devastating impact of the privatisation of Infrastructure Maintenance in the UK.

The campaign started on November 11, 2002, with four-hour stop work meetings at Newcastle, Grafton, Lismore, Narrabri, Maitland, Bathurst, Orange, Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Goulburn, concluding at Moss Vale on November 22.

Each public meeting was addressed by Union Organisers, local members, Mayors, Trades and Labor Council representatives and key community leaders. Flyers, stickers and petitions were distributed and the community meeting resolution was passed unanimously.

The public meetings conveyed the major concerns of railworkers, which were set out in a Community Meeting Resolution.

Radio, print and television media strongly supported the campaign, with many delegates addressing the media one-on-one.

Community Meeting Resolution:

This meeting of rail workers and community members strongly opposes the Federal Government's proposal for the NSW rural and Hunter rail track to be taken over by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) and calls upon the NSW Government to reject it.

This proposal will see the removal of 1,500 rural jobs resulting in the withdrawal of much needed income from local communities and a reduction in rail safety while the NSW tax payer will carry any financial risks.

Our opposition is based on the fact that:

• The Proposal would lead to an up-front loss of at least 1,500 jobs in rural NSW, with further losses upon the implementation of contestability;
• Establishing multiple rail regimes in NSW will create an environment of complicated interfaces between different sections of the network. Each section will have differing systems, standards and procedures, similar to the British Rail experience, and will compromise the safety of the system;
• The acceptance of the Proposal will incalculably damage the rail agencies' capacity to manage the remaining parts of the system due to the loss of intellectual property, skills and competence;
• In view of the above, the prospect of the NSW Government retaining the capability to resume the system if ARTC defaults on the contract is unrealistic, meaning that the 60 year lease is, in practical effect, a sale;
• The ARTC proposes no program of infrastructure investment beyond the first five of the 60 year lease;
• In the event that the NSW Government loses the capacity to resume the system and the ARTC defaults on the contract, or fails to properly maintain the infrastructure, the likely outcome is a sale to private interests and the creation of a private monopoly; and
• The proposal ignores the economic value of the rail corridor and cedes ownership to the ARTC at a price significantly below market value.

This meeting of Rail Delegates and Community Members regards the ARTC proposal as an attempt by the Federal Government to further control and run down public infrastructure.

It calls upon the Federal Government to spend the proposed $800 million - offered to the NSW government provided it hands over control - on a revitalised and internationally competitive rail industry for NSW.

Finally, those present at this meeting stand ready to take any further action that may be required including a state-wide stoppage and mass rally in Sydney.

The rail unions next presented the NSW Treasurer, Michael Egan, with a copy of the Community Meeting Resolution.

The Treasurer said that the NSW government had informed the ARTC that its Proposal was inadequate in safety, reliability, finances and rural job protection.

He emphasised that the NSW Government would decide on the merits of a revised proposal from the ARTC.

The unions told the Treasurer that the proposal was fundamentally flawed because it contracts out the rail maintenance work, and divides the ownership of the NSW rail network.

With these elements, it falls short in the key areas of jobs and safety.

So we must continue with the ongoing campaign against the ARTC Proposal.