Hundreds of thousands of State Government workers across the country may lose out on PPL in a double blow if Tony Abbott wins the federal election, CPSU National Vice President Tom Lynch warned today.  Mr Lynch said, “across the country, state government employees have existing entitlements to paid parental leave on full pay won by union members through successful agreement bargaining since the 1970’s.”  In South Australia, government employees have 18 weeks in their state agreement.  New South Wales, Victorian and Western Australian government employees have 14 weeks in their agreement (Victoria’s Agreement is under the federal Fair Work Act).  Queensland government employees have 14 weeks under state policy directive and Tasmanian government employees have 12 weeks in their state agreement.  “The funding for these entitlements is locked in the forward estimates of every State budget and enforceable in our industrial agreements,” he said.

Mr Lynch said, “from leading the field with family friendly entitlements at work there is a double blow now in this for hundreds of thousands of state public sector employees.”  “State public sector employees are entitled to paid parental leave from their employer at their normal rate of pay and 18 weeks from the Federal government at the minimum wage.  CPSU is concerned that state government employees are effectively being asked to ‘vacate the field’ when it comes to paid parental leave and to trust Mr Abbott to do the right thing.”   “Less than 20 years ago many women working for a state government had to use their sick leave as paid maternity leave and our members have fought hard over 40 years to achieve any paid maternity leave.  

If Abbott wins, state workers lose on PPL, and may miss the Coalitions 26 week scheme and also no longer have access to the current Federal scheme of 18 weeks which Tony Abbott says he’ll scrap,” he said.

MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
CPSU SPSF Group National Vice President Tom Lynch on 0418 412 766