Western Power job cuts threaten reliability and safety of electricity supply

Electricity unions have warned of dangerous consequences for the community, flowing from the significant cuts to Western Power staffing levels announced on Monday.

Western Power workers were advised 215 jobs would go, as a first round of job cuts commencing in May.  The job losses would include office staff, as well as field staff, and cover jobs including maintenance.

The Australian Services Union (ASU) and Electrical Trades Union (ETU) joined forces in 2014 to campaign against the privatisation of WA’s electricity network.  They have consistently warned that privatisation would result in fewer jobs and apprenticeships, as well as higher electricity prices, less reliable services and increased bushfire danger.

ASU WA Assistant Branch Secretary Jill Hugo said the job losses would have an immediate impact on the community.

“With privatisation, the community always pays,” Ms Hugo said.

“First up, 215 Western Power workers will pay with their jobs, as the Barnett Government cuts costs at Western Power to make it more attractive to potential purchasers.

“Lower staffing levels will mean cuts to preventative maintenance, longer waits on the phone and longer response times when things go wrong.

“At best, the impact of lower staffing levels will be more frequent and longer lasting power outages.  At worst, we could see more bushfires caused by poorly maintained poles and wires.”

ETU WA Branch Secretary Les McLaughlan said privatisation had had catastrophic consequences in Victoria.

“The Royal Commission into Victoria’s Black Saturday bushfires, which left 173 people dead, found that faulty privatised power lines were responsible for causing five of the most devastating blazes.

“This tragic case study highlights the very real dangers of electricity privatisation to the community.  It has special relevance to communities in Perth’s hills and the south west of Western Australia.

“Once electricity networks are placed in the hands of private companies, the number one factor that guides decision-making around maintenance and investment in new infrastructure is profit. Public safety becomes less of a priority.

“Today’s announcement shows that the Barnett Government is trying to make Western Power look as profitable as possible, to attract potential purchasers.  It is now clear that we don’t have to wait until Western Power is privatised to see job losses and associated cuts to maintenance. Just the intent to privatise, alone, is seeing the negative impacts of privatisation visited on the community.

“These job losses represent a seven per cent reduction in field staff, the people who we rely on to perform maintenance and get things running when they break down.  That’s a seven per cent reduction in the people who keep the lights on and ensure our poles and wires are safe to operate.

Mr McLaughlan said a decision by Colin Barnett to lease Western Power would be just as bad as a sale.

“A long term lease of Western Power’s assets would have the same negative impacts on the community and would still represent a fire sale, designed to fix the financial mess Colin Barnett himself has created,” Mr McLaughlan said.

“Former Queensland Premier Campbell Newman tried to trick the Queensland community into thinking long term leasing was a less harmful form of privatisation, but Queenslanders saw though this deception and showed him the door.

“We are going to throw the kitchen sink at our Use Your Power campaign.  We’ll be asking all Western Australians to use their power at the ballot box to defeat the Barnett Government and stop the privatisation of our electricity system.”