Milked Dry: Brownes Workers Strike for Job Security, Better Pay and Respect

Transport Workers Union (TWU) Brownes members will walk off the job on Wednesday, April 1st, at 6:00am for 24 hours after the company refused to compromise on fair and decent claims made by workers.

After five bargaining meetings with the TWU, Brownes is unwilling to reach a fair agreement on offering a wage increase that keeps in line with the rising cost of living, parental leave for workers that is humane, and on job security with less reliance on Labour hire workers.

The Brownes distribution centre is one of Perth’s major processing and packaging facilities, processing around 150 million litres of dairy products between its Balcatta and Brunswick sites annually.

TWU members working in the refrigeration warehouse and milk lab are tired. 

When families need support the most, male workers are given just one week of paid parental leave before being pushed back to work to keep providing for their families.

Each day they deal with a lack of respect from management, staff calling them “unproductive” and support that is conditional, with deteriorating job security. 

These workers have a right to transparency in the workplace without the ongoing threat of being replaced by lower-cost labour hire.

Quotes Attributable to TWU WA State Secretary Tim Dawson.

“The TWU will not allow company bosses to intimidate and bully their workers.”

“The union has asked for Brownes to come to the table and discuss fair and reasonable claims made by our members. However, it seems the company would rather risk supply disruptions than work with us.”

With the Easter long weekend fast approaching, it’s possible that some deliveries may be disrupted if not delivered on time.