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Speaker 1: You're listening to MIX one O four point nine three sixteen. Now,

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Speaker 1: as we know, the budget's being delivered at eleven o'clock.

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Speaker 1: No real idea at this stage exactly how the finances

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Speaker 1: are sitting or what level of debt the government is in,

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Speaker 1: but we do know that late last week the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory Gunner government locked in a zero percent wage offer

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Speaker 1: for public servants, a commitment made quite some time ago,

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Speaker 1: as I understand it, in an effort to rain in

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Speaker 1: the spending. Now joining me on the line is Kay Densley,

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Speaker 1: the Secretary of the Community in Public Sector Union. Good

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Speaker 1: morning to UK. Good morning, Kay, you say the freeze

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Speaker 1: is not just bad for anty public service employees who've

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Speaker 1: already gone above and beyond during the pandemic, but it's

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Speaker 1: bad for the economy and workers everywhere.

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Speaker 2: Why it certainly is you know, it's basically a pay

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Speaker 2: cut for public service workers and they're wanting this to

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Speaker 2: go on for four long years, So prices are going

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Speaker 2: to be going up and you're including power goes up

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Speaker 2: by CPI and wayes are just going to lag behind.

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Speaker 2: And it's not fair considering what the public service does

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Speaker 2: and the services they provide.

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Speaker 1: Okay, when does this come into effect? Is it immediately?

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Speaker 2: It's the offer on the table in bargaining. So our

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Speaker 2: current agreement, the general Agreement, expires in August, so public

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Speaker 2: public service workers under that agreement, we'll get to vote

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Speaker 2: on their agreement before August. So they're the ones who

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Speaker 2: will either accept the payoffer or hopefully the government will

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Speaker 2: come to the table beforehand. We're happy to talk about

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Speaker 2: the percentage where after two point five percent over two

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Speaker 2: years is our initials claim. We're happy to talk to

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Speaker 2: government about that. But nothing is nothing and it's just

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Speaker 2: going to cause workers go backwards and leave the territory.

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Speaker 1: Okay, This is obviously one of the measures that the

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Speaker 1: government's implemented in an effort to rain in the spending.

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Speaker 1: Many listening will be wondering why the public service feels

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Speaker 1: they're immune to a pay freeze when many in the

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Speaker 1: private sector have had to cop one.

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Speaker 2: I don't think many in the private sector have copped one.

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Speaker 2: The public services has kept providing those services and keeping

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Speaker 2: us safe all through last year, the terrible time, and

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Speaker 2: now we're trying to attract more people into the territory.

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Speaker 2: We were being told that the economy is on the

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Speaker 2: up and up, and we're hopeful that that's the case.

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Speaker 2: But you can't give people a pay cut, you know,

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Speaker 2: for four years just to help with you know, I

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Speaker 2: think it's shortsighted about the offer that they've provided.

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Speaker 1: Okay, what has the reaction been from the public service?

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Speaker 2: Well, they're angry and we're getting lots of feedback from

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Speaker 2: members and we're encouraging them to tell the government and

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Speaker 2: the commissioners and Public Employment about how they're feeling about this.

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Speaker 2: So I think that they feel disrespected and I don't

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Speaker 2: blame them.

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Speaker 1: This is this more about the duration of time that

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Speaker 1: the government wants to freeze these wages or is it

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Speaker 1: the fact that it's a freeze you know from the outset.

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Speaker 2: Look, four years is a really long time and anything

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Speaker 2: can happen. We're hoping that the territory does start to recover.

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Speaker 2: We know that recovery is you know, everyone's trying to

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Speaker 2: do that all around Australia and the world in that respect,

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Speaker 2: and here we're lucky at the most of the place

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Speaker 2: is getting full all the time. And now disbudget, the

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Speaker 2: government's trying to get you know, an extra five thousand

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Speaker 2: house releases. You know, all that's wonderful, but people expect

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Speaker 2: services when they move them where they expect to be

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Speaker 2: able to have their family looked after and their news

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Speaker 2: looked after. So if public servants leave the territory, you're

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Speaker 2: not going to get that, and you're certainly not going

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Speaker 2: to attract people here.

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Speaker 1: Kay, do public servants except that everyone is doing it

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Speaker 1: tough though, and they also need to be part of

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Speaker 1: that budget recovery.

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Speaker 2: Certainly they're sensible about it, but I think just the

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Speaker 2: fact that you know, it was just well, we're not

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Speaker 2: going to pay you anything except this one thousand dollar

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Speaker 2: taxed bonus. It's going to affect people's long term superranuation.

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Speaker 2: It obviously affects their take home pay, and you know

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Speaker 2: they need to pay their bills and prices are going

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Speaker 2: to keep going up. So it leaves a lot of

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Speaker 2: uncertainty with people. And while you know they work for

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Speaker 2: the territory government, they support the territory government and territorians,

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Speaker 2: but you know, zero pay rise.

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Speaker 1: Really, Kay, Again, I would say, you know, what is

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Speaker 1: the reaction from people?

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Speaker 2: Are they?

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Speaker 1: You know, do you think we're going to see public

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Speaker 1: servants leave town?

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Speaker 2: It certainly could happen. We'll see how negotiations go up

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Speaker 2: until you know, when people have to vote on an agreement.

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Speaker 2: If zero is still on the table, I can't see

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Speaker 2: them accepting it. But it is up to our members

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Speaker 2: and the public service workers about whether or not they

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Speaker 2: accept this deal. Personally, I think that you know, they

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Speaker 2: deserve more. We're happy to talk about the figure, and

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Speaker 2: we're happy to talk for a shorter term, and I

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Speaker 2: think that's a sensible way to approach it rather than

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Speaker 2: what the government's just thrown on the table.

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Speaker 1: Okay, what will happen though if there isn't movement here

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Speaker 1: and you know, if zero is the figure.

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Speaker 2: Well not only in the public service, And I can't

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Speaker 2: predict what's going to happen or how people reactually saw

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Speaker 2: how their family budgets are run. But we're already starting

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Speaker 2: to hear that in private enterprise they're not going to

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Speaker 2: offer pay rise as neither because they're not in the

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Speaker 2: public service. So what's going to be happening is that

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Speaker 2: we're all going to end up getting paid less and

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Speaker 2: I don't think that's a great outcome to attract people

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Speaker 2: and skilled people to the territory, which is something which

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Speaker 2: the government says that they want to do.

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Speaker 1: Kate just quickly. We know that yesterday was May Day.

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Speaker 1: Hundreds of people turned up to march for workers' rights.

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Speaker 1: Was there a good turnout?

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Speaker 2: Yes, yes, it was great. So May Day he is

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Speaker 2: always wonderful and we end up at the beautiful Esplana

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Speaker 2: for a concert and so it's great to be able

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Speaker 2: to express that. Of course, a lot of people go

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Speaker 2: fishing as well, and you can't blame for that up

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Speaker 2: here in the territory, that's for sure. But a great

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Speaker 2: day was had by all. We've got Sally McManus up

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Speaker 2: here this week and also Michelle Myers from the ALP,

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Speaker 2: so it was really great to share the day with

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Speaker 2: some leaders in our movements.

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Speaker 1: Okay, we have been contacted by by some other unions

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Speaker 1: who said that Unions NT had stopped some of those

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Speaker 1: unions from marching yesterday, including the SDA and the cfmm EU.

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Speaker 1: Is that the case.

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Speaker 2: We limited it because of the COVID. We had to

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Speaker 2: fill in a COVID form, so you know there was

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Speaker 2: there were limits to numbers. So we actually said that

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Speaker 2: any unions that were affiliated to unions and could march.

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Speaker 2: So Steve and you were there and they marched ready anyway,

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Speaker 2: But we didn't want thousands and thousands of people or

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Speaker 2: we'd have Hugh Heggy yelling at us and we don't

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Speaker 2: want that.

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Speaker 1: Well, but we were all able to attend the footy

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Speaker 1: and and other things, so surely there would have been

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Speaker 1: a way around it.

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Speaker 2: Well, everyone could attend the concert. That was no problems

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Speaker 2: because it had that that limit. But that was a.

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Speaker 1: Decision that was made, so it wasn't there's no friction

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Speaker 1: between the unions.

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Speaker 2: No, no, it's just they're not affiliated to union vent

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Speaker 2: at this time.

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Speaker 1: Okay, good to catch up with you this morning. I

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Speaker 1: appreciate your time. We will leave it there. It's going

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Speaker 1: to be a busy day. We may catch up with

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Speaker 1: you again in coming days, depending on what is in

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Speaker 1: that budget.

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Speaker 2: Always happy, thank you, Thanks Kay.

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Speaker 1: That is Kate Densley there, who is indeed the Community

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Speaker 1: and Public Sector Union anti regional secretary. And I tell you, Wash,

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Speaker 1: it's going to be a busy morning. After eleven o'clock

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Speaker 1: we're going to have more detail on that budget. What

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Speaker 1: did you think there about Kay Densley saying that you

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Speaker 1: know she would argue that most in the private sector

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Speaker 1: have not had to have wage cuts or not had

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Speaker 1: paid decreases over that COVID period. It's not what I'm hearing.

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Speaker 1: It's certainly not what I've experienced, what friends and family

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Speaker 1: have experienced. But keen to hear your thoughts today eight

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Speaker 1: nine four one one four nine