THAT MADE HISTORY FOR THE ETU IN SYDNEY CONSTRUCTION 24 GAINS

BY ALLEN HICKS, SECRETARY ETU NSW & ACT

Several of our 2022-2025 construction EBAs have been ratified in the Fair Work Commission. Many similar agreements at top tier contractors have been approved in-principle and will be ratified in due course. We anticipate the construction industry EBA will be rolled out to over 30 companies.

These EBAs are some of the best I’ve been involved with in my 23 years as a union official. I want to take you through the key gains our members have made – but first let’s recap how we reached this point.

It’s been a five-year journey. When we launched the ‘It’s Time’ campaign in December 2018, the ETU NSW & ACT had just a handful of construction EBAs with rates and conditions well below those in Queensland and Victoria.

ETU membership across construction and contracting was just 3,293 and our delegates structures were deficient. The base hourly rate for a Grade 5 Electrician was $46.51 in June 2019.

We’ve come a long way in the past five years! Membership in construction and contracting currently sits at 5,316, a 61% increase. Our union has excellent delegates and HSRs across the sector. Today the hourly base rate is $54.44, a 17% increase from 2019. In May 2025, the rate will be $61.03. That’s a 16.25% rise in the new EBAs, and a total increase of 31.2% over six years.

While those new wage rates are great improvements, they are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the 202225 agreement -- but let’s never forget how we achieved this great outcome.

Nothing in these agreements was gifted to workers out of the kindness of employers. Every item we have achieved is because ETU members backed the strategies developed by the ETU leadership and delegates and were prepared to take action to achieve those outcomes.

The companies knew we had the power and resources to back up our claims, if required. Thankfully, industrial action has not been required at present to deliver these great outcomes with most employers seeking to work collaboratively with the ETU.

In future, we may need industrial action to defend our gains and advance further claims. That’s why it’s essential that every worker joins the ETU and supports our delegates on the job.