WESTERN AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMISSION. Industrial Relations Act 1979. Metals and Engineering Workers' Union— Western Australian Branch and Metrobus and Other. No. AG 111 of 1995. Metrobus Engineering and Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 1995. SENIOR COMMISSIONER G.G. HALLIWELL . 26 July 1995. Order. REGISTRATION OF AN ENTERPRISE BARGAINING INDUSTRIAL AGREEMENT No. AG 111 of 1995. HAVING heard Mr D. Hicks on behalf of the Applicant and Mr J.A. Lange on behalf of the Respondent, and by consent, the Commission, pursuant to the powers conferred on it under the Industrial Relations Act, 1979 hereby orders— That the following schedule titled the Metrobus Engi- neering and Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 1995, signed for me for identification, be registered as an En- terprise Bargaining Industrial Agreement to take effect from the beginning of the first pay period commencing on or after the 11 th day of July, 1995. (Sgd.) G.G. HALLIWELL, [L.S] Senior Commissioner. Schedule. 1 .—TITLE This Agreement shall be known as the 'Metrobus Engineer- ing and Maintenance Engineering Agreement 1995'. 2.—ARRANGEMENT 1. Title 2. Arrangement 3. Parties to the Agreement and Incidence 4. Date of Operation and Term 5. Relationship to other Awards 6. State Wage Principles 7. Structural Efficiency Principle 8. Measures to Effect Real Gains in Productivity Part 1—Central Workshop Part 2—Depot Engineering 9. Wage Increases 9A. No Extra Claims 10. Flexible Hours 11. Flexible Rostered Days Off 12. Family Leave 13. Dispute Settlement Procedure 14. Single Bargaining Unit Signatories to the Agreement 3.—PARTIES TO THE AGREEMENT AND INCIDENCE The parties to this Agreement are: (1) Metropolitan (Perth) Passenger Transport Trust ("Metrobus"), and (2) Metals and Engineering Workers' Union—Western Australian Branch and the Australian Electrical, Electronics, Foundry and Engineering Union (WA Branch) ("the unions"). This Agreement shall apply to all wages employees of Metrobus Asset Management Services and to engineering employees employed in Metrobus Depots. 2372 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL GAZETTE 75 W.A.I.G. 4.—-DATE OF OPERATION AND TERM This Agreement shall operate from the beginning of the first pay period commencing on or after 11th July, 1995 and shall operate for a period of 12 months from the date of registra- tion. The parties are committed to commencing re-negotiation of a further enterprise agreement three months prior to the ex- piry of the term of this Agreement and will make every rea- sonable effort to finalise those negotiations before the expiry of this Agreement. 5.—RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER AWARDS (1) This Agreement shall be read and interpreted wholly in conjunction with the Engineering Trades (Government) Award No.s 29, 30, 31 of 1961 and 3 of 1962 as amended at the operative date of this Agreement, provided that where there is any inconsistency, the terms of this Agreement shall prevail to the extent of any such inconsistency. (2) The parties intend to meet the terms of this Agreement notwithstanding the provisions of any other award by which they are covered. 6.—STATE WAGE PRINCIPLES (1) The parties accept that they are bound by the terms of this Agreement throughout its duration and they will oppose any application by other parties to be joined to this Enterprise Agreement. (2) The parties stipulate that their commitment to this Agree- ment precludes the availability of variation or cancellation during its term. (3) The parties are committed to either renewing or with- drawing from this Enterprise Agreement on the expiry of its term. (4) Implementation of this Agreement shall not cause an employee to suffer a reduction in ordinary time earnings or depart from Western Australian Industrial Relations Commis- sion standards of hours, annual leave with pay or long service leave with pay. (5) The majority of employees affected by the changes pro- posed in this Agreement genuinely agree to the changes. 7.—STRUCTURAL EFFICIENCY PRINCIPLE (1) This Agreement builds on progress achieved to date through the implementation of the Structural Efficiency Prin- ciple. (2) The parties have examined and continue to review a range of non-award and award matters. (3) The Metal Trades (Metropolitan Perth Passenger Trans- port Trust) Award No. 1 of 1974 has been cancelled, having been incorporated into the parent Engineering Trades (Gov- ernment) Award. (4) The parties have substantially implemented all provi- sions required under the Structural Efficiency Principle. (5) Consultation measures have been in place since 1989 and are continually refined according to operational experi- ence and needs. (6) Employees have been reclassified into skills-based ca- reer paths. A competency based training program has been drafted and will be reviewed once National Training Board and/or State Training Authority guidelines and accreditation processes are available. As a continuation of Structural Efficiency, the parties are committed to reviewing, during the term of this Agreement, the existing requirements for classification to Engineering Tradesperson—C9 and Engineering Tradesperson Special Class—-C8, ensuring Metrobus' requirements are consistent with Western Australian interim metal industry standards and the relevant draft national standards for the metal industry. (7) The parties are also committed, during the term of this Agreement, to adopting competency definitions for classifi- cation to Engineering Tradesperson Special Class—C7 in line with state and national standards and to conducting a skills audit to ensure that employees are appropriately classified at all levels of the classification structure. 8.—MEASURES TO EFFECT REAL GAINS IN PRODUCTIVITY (1) The parties agree that changes to management and work practices in the maintenance areas are necessary in order to successfully compete for business, retaining and adding to the existing customer base. (2) The parties have identified the measures outlined in Parts One and Two of subclause (5) of this clause as resulting in improved performance and safety in critical areas of activity including the integration of maintenance and bus operations, customer focussed service provision, quality and cost man- agement. (3) Many of the measures outlined are inter-related and will work together for continuous improvement in maintenance operations. (4) Central workshop management and staff undertake to do everything possible to support the Depots in the operation of their productivity measures and likewise. Depots' manage- ment and staff undertake to support the Central Workshops in the implementation and operation of their productivity meas- ures. (5) Part One—Central Workshop The following measures contained in sub sections (a) to (o) of this subclause have application to the engineering and main- tenance operations at the Central Workshop. (a) Decreased wastage of consumables and their maxi- mum utilisation; and reduced electricity and water usage. (b) Cost effectively extend the life of a part of recycle re-usable parts through constant monitoring, by tradespersons on each job, of parts replaced. The Central Workshop is responsible for reclamation or separation and disposal of scrap in the most cost ef- ficient means available. (c) Further improve maintenance practices, streamlin- ing systems from the identification of repair require- ments through to repair completion to eliminate duplication of data entry by both stores and mainte- nance personnel, thereby increasing available pro- ductive time, providing better tracking of consumable and materials usage and a more accurate means for job costing. (d) Streamline the stores system, reduce turn around time and overnight garaging and provide for better workforce planning and more efficient labour utili- sation via maintenance forecasting. (e) Management and the shopfloor to co-operate in the identification and implementation of improved work practices (including the introduction of new tech- nology) on an ongoing basis to improve service pro- cedures. (f) Improve performance and further reduce lost time through continue development and promotion of the occupational health and safety program and initia- tives. (g) Streamline, standardise and document work proc- esses and procedures for quality accreditation to AS 3902 and continue to support the quality process. (h) Direct communication at regular bi-monthly meet- ings of Central Workshop management and the main- tenance employees. The purpose of such communication shall be to update employees and receive their input on: (i) the business environment; (ii) Metrobus goals and directions; (iii) performance feedback especially in regard to competitiveness; and (iv) customer satisfaction levels. (i) Undertake a detailed competitor analysis to identify competitor strengths and weaknesses and optimise those findings in terms of Central Workshop overall operations. (j) Contract out any functions where Section manage- ment and employees can not offer the required qual- ity of service or product at competitive rates. 75 W.A.I.G. WESTERN AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL GAZETTE 2373 following a joint review by each Central Workshop Section of all its tasks. (k) Investigation and elimination of the causes of rust in buses. (1) Introduce staggered start and finish times, meal and refreshment breaks and the taking of rostered days off to provide for optimum staff coverage thereby reducing bus down time and fleet numbers (re vehi- cles in excess of peak demand) and providing opti- mum use of plant and equipment. This subclause shall operate to provide the Cen- tral Workshop with maximum flexibility in regard to hours worked in order to extend coverage to meet customer service deadlines. (Refer to Clause 10.—^Flexible Hours and Clause 11.—Flexible Rostered Days Off for enabling pro- visions re this subclause). (m) Work teams regulate wash up time and refreshment breaks in line with work demands. (n) Decrease overheads through the introduction of a flatter management structure and the extension of team responsibilities to enable team members to al- locate daily tasks and provide coverage, from within the team or from another team, for unplanned ab- sences. (o) Provide an equitable pay system that is efficient to administer after exploring pay averaging or annualised salaries options. Part Two—Metrobus Depots The following measures contained in sub section (p) to (ee) of this subclause have application to the engineering and maintenance operations at Metrobus Depots. (p) Decreased wastage of consumables and maximum utilisation of same; and reduced electricity and wa- ter usage. (q) Cost effectively extend the life of a part or recycle re-usable parts through constant monitoring, by tradespersons on each job, of parts replaced. This requires the return of all used parts to the Central Workshop responsible for reclamation or separation and disposal of scrap. (r) Streamline the stores system, reduce turn around time and overnight garaging and provide for better workforce planning and more efficient labour utili- sation via maintenance forecasting. (s) Management and the shopfloor to co-operate in the identification and implementation of improved work practices (including the introduction of new tech- nology) on an ongoing basis to improve service pro- cedures. Initiatives initially identified include: (i) maintenance staff to pick up and deliver buses between Depots and the Central Workshop for service and repair purposes; (ii) the design and construction of customised tools for accurate and efficient bus service, repair and modification; (t) Contract out any functions where Depot maintenance management and employees can not offer the re- quired quality of service or product at competitive rates, following a joint review by each Depot Work- shop Section of all its tasks. (u) Identify and promote practical improvements in the system used to identify, communicate, diagnose and respond to on-road defects, providing for direct con- tact between maintenance providers and users. (v) Depot engineering maintenance employees will carry out routine minor building maintenance or repairs, provided that the employee is competent to under- take such maintenance tasks and it does not inter- fere with the employee's ability to complete his or her usual defined tasks on time and to the required quality. Such arrangements shall be subject to agreement between management and the individual employee concerned. (w) Direct communication at regular bi-monthly meet- ings of each Regional Manager and the maintenance employees at each worksite within his/her area of responsibility. The purpose of such communication shall be to update employees and receive their input on: (i) the business environment; (ii) Metrobus goals and directions; (iii) performance feedback especially in regard to competitiveness; and (iv) customer satisfaction levels. (x) Investigate and eliminate the causes of rust in buses, (y) Introduce staggered start and finish times, meal and refreshment breaks and the taking of rostered days off to provide for optimum staff coverage thereby reducing bus down time and fleet numbers (re vehi- cles in excess of peak demand) and providing opti- mum use of plant and equipment. This subclause shall operate to provide each De- pot with maximum flexibility in regard to hours worked in order to extend coverage to meet costome service deadlines. (Refer to Clause 10.—Flexible Hours and Clause 11.—Flexible Rostered Days Off for enabling provisions re this subclause). (z) Work teams regulate wash up time and refreshment breaks in line with work demands. (aa) Decrease overheads through the introduction of a flatter management structure and the extension of team responsibilities to enable team members to al- locate daily tasks and provide coverage, from within the team or from another team, for unplanned ab- sences. (bb) Provide an equitable pay system that is efficient to administer after exploring pay averaging or annualised salaries options. (cc) Streamline, standardise and document work proc- esses and procedures for quality accreditation to AS 3902 and continue to support the quality process, (dd) Further improve safety performance and reduce down time by developing and taking responsibility for the implementation of Depot site-based occupational health and safety initiatives. (ee) Improve efficiency and safety with management and shopfloor working together to evaluate and re-de- sign working areas. (These are detailed in Appendix 1 Productivity In- dicators and Targets; and a separate document titled Appendix 2—Implementation Plans). 9.—WAGE INCREASES There shall be wage increases calculated on the award rates of pay applicable immediately prior to ratification but exclu- sive of and absorbing any Safety Net Adjustments for each award classification as provided for below. (1) An increase of 4% payable commencing from the first pay period on or after the date of ratification of this Agree- ment by the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commis- sion. (2) Additional increases shall be payable over the term of the Agreement as follows: (a) 2% on achievement of accumulated savings of $824,000 arising from this agreement; (b) 2% on achievement of accumulated savings of $1,236,000 arising from this agreement. (3) Productivity gains achieved during the life of this Agree- ment, which result in savings in excess of that allocated to the 8% wage increase identified above, shall entitle each employee to receive an additional Enterprise Agreement weekly wage increase, calculated as a one third share of such additional savings, payable at the end of the Agreement's term of opera- tion, providing that the target of 23.6 cents per kilometre identified in Appendix 1 has also been achieved. 2374 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL GAZETTE 75 W.A.I.G. (4) The rates of pay applicable under this agreement at the time of separation shall apply to the entitlements of any em- ployee who terminates their employment with Metrobus dur- ing the life of this agreement. 9A.—NO EXTRA CLAIMS It is a term of this agreement that the unions undertake not to pursue any wages or conditions claims, award or overaward, except when consistent with the Principles of the