Sydney commuters have been urged to work from home or check travel apps before leaving on Monday to avoid being caught up in potential public transport chaos amid rail unions’ ongoing standoff with the New South Wales government.
The warning comes as the Fair Work Commission on Sunday ruled high rates of sick leave by Sydney train drivers and guards on Friday did not constitute industrial action.
On Friday afternoon, operators Sydney Trains and NSW Trains applied to the commission to stop what they claimed was a covert campaign of industrial action, when hundreds of train drivers and guards called in sick and others failed to turn up to work. That led to cascading cancellations, delays and disruptions across the network, including more than 800 services cancelled.
On Sunday, the commission’s deputy president, Thomas Roberts, dismissed the application by train operators.
“I am not satisfied on the evidence that I can infer from any increase in sick leave numbers that the union has organised or is organising a covert campaign of sick leave amongst its members and I would decline to make orders against the union on that basis,” Roberts said in his decision.
Toby Warnes, NSW branch secretary for the Rail, Tram and Bus Union, described the decision as a win for unions in their ongoing industrial dispute with the state government.
“There have been at least five [Fair Work hearings] and the government haven’t won one yet. Right now they’re five for none,” he said.
The situation facing commuters on Monday remained unclear as Warnes advised commuters to check their apps before leaving home and to “work from home if you can”.
“Tomorrow may well be fine, but tomorrow may well be worse than Friday,” he said.
“Unfortunately, over the past 10 months, the only time that the government has spoken to us or engaged with us constructively, is after a period of industrial action or during a period of industrial action.”
The protracted industrial dispute would continue into next week, with the full bench of the commission expected to hear the case on Wednesday.
John Graham, the NSW transport minister, said the government hoped the outcome of that hearing would end industrial action by train drivers.
“This dispute over time has been about a range of things, at one point about running trains 24 hours a day and at another point about free fares, now it is about a $4,500 sign-on bonus. We cannot afford bells and whistles.”
Graham said the government was offering “fair pay and conditions in line with what the government has settled with other workers”.
A different matter involving the parties was also scheduled to be heard by the commission on Monday.
