Defence’s job cuts jolt union
THE Community and Public Sector Union has revealed its shock at a Defence decision to move an air force squadron from Townsville to Victoria following job cuts last year.
The Bulletin revealed on Saturday 38 Squadron and its eight- aircraft Beechcraft King Air fleet would move to RAAF Base East Sale after almost a decade in the North.
Defence confirmed the transition would require moving 24 permanent Townsville air force personnel, while 40 civil defence jobs at Hawker Pacific would likely be cut when their King Air maintenance contract ends in December.
CPSU acting Queensland regional secretary Amy Smith was shocked to hear of the relocation and job cuts.
“I’m furious that barely a week goes by when I don’t have my work phone ring only to hear of more Federal Government job cuts in regional Queensland,” Ms Smith said. “Townsville has always been a garrison city, with a strong public sector.
“In tough times, these steady, secure jobs keep our local economy moving.”
Ms Smith said just weeks before Christmas, Australian public servants defence staff were advised positions would be cut at Lavarack Barracks.
She said petitioning by the union delayed the cuts but now up to 10 staff were still likely to lose their jobs.
“These 10 jobs might seem like a drop in the ocean but they are part of an alarming trend of cuts in Defence personnel and support staff away from Townsville,” she said.
“They are still 10 families that will be either out of work or forced to relocate to find a job and when you combine them with broader defence and federal public sector job cuts, the maths doesn’t lie.”
The Bulletin revealed in August that five ex- servicemen were to lose their jobs or be forced to move to Cairns after the Civil Aviation Safety Authority confirmed it would close its Townsville office.
In 2014, an Australian Australian Taxation Office decision to close a number of regional offices resulted in the loss of 110 Townsville jobs.
Ms Smith said Townsville had 50 fewer Defence staff in June 2017 than it had in December 2012, a cut of more than 12 per cent.
“Too often, cutting regional jobs and closing regional offices is seen as a ‘ quick fix’ savings measure,” she said.
“( We) continue to argue that the best course of action is to increase employment for cities and regional areas like Townsville by reversing regional job cuts and creating new jobs in agencies like the ATO, Department of Human Services, Defence, GBRMPA and the CSIRO – places that already have a regional footprint.”