NSW cleaners win portable leave

Date: 20 August 2010

NSW cleaners today celebrated the state government's announcement it would set up a portability of long service scheme for all contract cleaners.

NSW IR Minister Paul Lynch was happy to make the announcement today, saying there was much "enthusiasm" for such a scheme to be set up for cleaners. He also credited cleaners for a "long ongoing campaign" to make the government listen, including school cleaners' visits to Parliament House earlier in the year to lobby for, amongst other things, a portability of long service leave scheme.

School cleaner at Menai Primary School Barbara Mannix was at the announcement held at Alison Megarrity's electorate office in Hammondville this morning, together with other school cleaners and shopping centre cleaners.

Barbara was happy with the announcement as it meant her many years of service in the same school would be recognised. "Sixteen years I haven't been able to take long service leave," she said. Barbara has been at Menai Primary School for 27 years and had three different cleaning contractors.

"It's starting from scratch again [to accrue long service leave with the new contractors]," she said. "Ten years is a long time to stay in a job - and it's a hard job that we do. We would love that extra time to take off."

LHMU NSW Secretary Mark Boyd welcomed today's announcement saying such a scheme would be "very important" to cleaners. He gave the example of Westfield Hurstville cleaner Michael Baletic who has worked at the same shopping centre for 21 years.

"One place. One job. Every day of the week go there and do the same job but again because of the constant change in contractors in 21 years, Michael has never been able to take long service leave," Mark said.

Mark said today's announcement showed that the Labor government understood the pressures workers faced. "When we look at the announcement today and the introduction of the scheme, we know that only Labor governments make these reforms, look at these changes. Only Labor governments can make changes and will make changes for workers."

For further information

Contact:	Mark Boyd, Secretary
Union:	LHMU NSW
WWW:	http://www.lhmu.org.au/branches/nsw/

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