Vic: Ford to bring back half its workforce tomorrow

AAP General News (Australia)
08-24-2000
Vic: Ford to bring back half its workforce tomorrow

By Heather Gallagher, Industrial Correspondent

MELBOURNE, Aug 24 AAP - Ford Australia, struggling with the impact of strike action
at its radiator supplier, will bring half its stood-down workforce back to work tomorrow.

About 1,870 workers at the Broadmeadows plant, who have been stood down for three days
in the past week, will return to work.

But 1,930 Geelong workers will be forced to stay home for another day - resuming normal
duties next Monday.

Ford has been prevented from producing more than 800 cars over the past two days as
strike action at radiator supplier Natra took effect.

But Ford spokeswoman Louise Teesdale said the company was optimistic it would be back
to full production by Monday.

The halt in supplies, which began after Natra workers walked off the job last Friday,
forced Ford to stand down all manufacturing workers at Broadmeadows and Geelong yesterday.

Broadmeadows workers had also been stood down earlier in the week.

The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) said Natra workers walked out after
allegedly being taunted by their boss who refused to improve the provisions of a redundancy
package.

AMWU assistant state secretary Darren Nelson said Natra had lost its contract with
Ford and most of the workers there would be redundant within 18 months.

As a consequence, they were holding out for a redundancy deal to include four weeks
for every year of service.

Austrim director and general manager David Stobart confirmed subsidiary Natra had lost
the contract but said it did not expire until 2002.

He said the real issue was the AMWU's demand for a 15 per cent pay rise over 33 months,
in line with the so-called Campaign 2000.

The company has offered 12 per cent.

Natra workers returned to work yesterday following a hearing of the Australian Industrial
Relations Commission.

However, they are expected to join an industry-wide strike by about 30,000 manufacturing
workers next Tuesday.

Ms Teesdale said Ford had received undertakings from Natra it would have sufficient
supplies to see the car manufacturer through.

"We expect to be a bit short on Wednesday but we think we can get through it okay," she told AAP.

Meanwhile, Workplace Relations Minister Peter Reith said it was up to Premier Steve
Bracks to intervene and stop Tuesday's strike.

But a spokesman for Mr Bracks said campaigns such as Campaign 2000 were created by
Mr Reith's Workplace Relations Act.

AAP hmg/jd/gmw.

KEYWORD: FORD NIGHTLEAD

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