Grocon wants its builders to work on Australia Day

    January 22
    News.com.au



Grocon CEO Daniel Grollo speaks to workers at his Myer Emporium building site on Lonsdale St in Melbourne's CBD. Source: News Limited

AN Australia Day row has erupted after Grocon demanded workers stay on the job this long weekend.

The company run by Daniel Grollo is the only builder in Victoria that has asked the militant Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union to work over the national holiday.      

Australia Day falls on Sunday but Monday is officially a public holiday. The Australia Day weekend is locked down as a "fixed weekend" as part of the building union's industry agreement, which entitles them to a 36-hour week and 26 rostered days off a year.

The agreement also adds Tuesday as an RDO, which would extend the weekend to four days for most building workers.      

But Grocon is claiming that they need staff to work through the weekend because of 16 days it lost during the union's blockade of the Myer Emporium shopping centre site in 2012.

The CFMEU says that extra Sundays and RDOs have already covered those 16 days CFMEU assistant secretary Shaun Reardon said that workers had already done overtime through the Christmas break, adding the hours Grocon demanded were unsustainable.

"We are not asking for any favours. Workers are entitled to take their RDOs," he said.      

"Many of our members value their Australia Day holiday."

The dispute is the latest battle between bitter enemies Grocon and the CFMEU. Grocon is suing the union for $10.5 million in damages over the blockade, which was sparked by union concerns about who controlled the company's job sites.

The delays blew out the construction time for the Emporium site, which will become Melbourne's premier boutique shopping destination and home to Japanese brand Uniqlo, Adidas and Max Mara.

The centre was initially due to open before Christmas last year. Grocon spokesman Mike Zorbas said only three of Grocon's 54 labourers will be working on the Sunday and Monday.

"The Grocon employees will be paid double time on Sunday and double and a half time on Monday. Their presence on those days will allow between 20 and 40 employees of subcontractors to carry out works," he said.

"Where the Emporium project has been delayed, this is due in large part to the illegal blockades and repeated secondary boycott activities orchestrated by the CFMEU - unlawful behaviour not supported by Grocon's workforce."

Grappler Truth Teller Feller wrote on Jan 24^th, 2014 at 9:31am:


I bet there won't be any shortage of volunteers to work, since they get 2 - 2.5x pay.

CFMEU    ,   the union equivalent of al queda

I'm one of those people that don't believe in the reasons behind public holidays. But I'll take the pay increase for the days.

Grocon out to trash Australia Day.    

From his penthouse apartment in New York, Daniel Grollo has issued an order to rob workers of their Australia Day holiday.      

    After being worked through Christmas break, Grocon workers pressured to give up Australia Day holiday
    Letter from John Setka to workers on Grocon sites: "The company cannot force you to work"


Grocon is trying to force people to work the Australia Day long weekend, including the public holiday on Monday the 27th and the RDO the following day.

Grocon agrees that these are days off in its current EBA. Now it wants to change the rules and force people into work on one of the most important weekends of the year.

Nothing sacred
The only family and leisure time that building workers are guaranteed are the RDOs and public holidays protected by the industry calendar. Don’t let Grocon trash this as well.



Attention workers on Grocon sites
Grocon cannot take away your Australia Day long weekend. 

You work hard to provide for yourself and your family. Daniel Grollo – who was gifted the company by his father – makes big bucks off your hard yakka.

The only leisure and family time you are guaranteed are the RDOs and holidays set down in the industry calendar. Construction companies, including Grocon, agree to observe this calendar when they sign their EBA.

Now Grocon wants to rip up your RDO calendar and have you work the Australia day long weekend while everyone else is enjoying a break.

Australia Day is a significant national event and the last public holiday of summer. It is disgraceful for Grocon to try to trash this.

The good news is that all EBAs, including Grocon’s, give you the power to take your holidays and RDOs on the days that they fall. You cannot be forced to come in. If anyone pressures you to come in contact the CFMEU on 93413444 immediately.

The industry RDO calendar was hard-won by building workers in the past. In 2002 Grocon employees stood up to Daniel and defeated his attempt to take away their RDOs. If the company have their way they will trash the RDO calendar completely.       

Stand up for your leisure and family time. Don’t work on a public holiday or RDO. It’s your right.         



Yours sincerely

John Setka
CFMEU Secretary

what is it with these corporate types? It's never enough for them ... it really doesn't matter if the building is finished on the 20th march, or the 21 March .... no one will really care.

Yeah, those absolute arseholes - fancy expecting a few nice people to work and only giving them around $100 an hour for it.

Not only is grocon acting reasonably by it's workers, they're providing an invaluable public service - anything that keeps bogans away from alcohol on australia day is worth it's weight in gold.