Statement on protected industrial action

Endeavour Energy has been working closely and in good faith with our employees to negotiate a new Enterprise Agreement (EA) while balancing a strong commitment to constrain business costs in customers’ interests.

Our priority, as always, is the safety of our employees, customers and the community. We have contingency plans in place to limit the impact of industrial action on customers and will continue to focus on our core service to deliver a safe and reliable supply of electricity to customers.

Importantly, we have secured a safety commitment from the unions in the Fair Work Commission to protect customer and community safety and are seeking to bolster this commitment to ensure minimum staffing numbers.

Our discussions on the enterprise agreement continue and we are committed to working constructively with our employees throughout this process.

Given the current economic conditions, we feel fortunate to put forward a proposal to our employees that is fair and reasonable and recognises the important work they do each day.

Our offer includes wage increases over a three-year period with an up-front payment of $1000, followed by fair pay increases of 5.25% from 1 July 2024, a 3.25% increase from 1 July 2025 and a 2.75% increase from 1 July 2026.

By comparison, the unions are seeking an 8% pay increase year on year and have included a log of 65 other claims.

We do not believe the unions requested pay increases and other claims are sustainable. They add significant costs to the business over the next three years, without any productivity or efficiency improvements.

Our corporate overheads have more than halved since 2017 when we were leased to our shareholders and that reflects our continued focus on efficiency.

In line with the Fair Work Act, the Electrical Trades Union (ETU) has informed us they are taking protected industrial action, which includes work stoppages.

While we respect the right of unions to strike, we believe more progress can be made by focusing on negotiations.