Martha HAYLETT (Ripon) (13:25):

I have been contacted by many Ballarat City Council workers in my electorate who have been waiting for a pay rise since September last year. Their employer pays the worst of any major regional council in Victoria, and workers are sick of it. These workers care for our kids, maintain our roads, clean our public amenities and collect waste across Cardigan Village, Lucas, Learmonth, Mitchell Park, Miners Rest, Invermay and beyond. They keep Ballarat going, but despite this they are being paid $2 less an hour than council workers in Bendigo, Geelong and even neighbouring Moorabool shire. For a full-time worker that is a massive difference of $4000 a year.

The mighty Australian Services Union has been supporting these workers through their ongoing dispute with Ballarat City Council. Management have committed to putting a revised wage offer on the table tomorrow, and ASU members will have a mass meeting on Thursday this week to consider the revised offer and vote as to whether to proceed with industrial action or not. I stand with these workers in their fight for fair pay and conditions. They are an asset to the Ballarat community, and they deserve better. I want to thank the ASU and their organisers for supporting these workers for the past nine months and beyond. I wish the workers the very best in their pursuit of a pay rise, and I encourage Ballarat City Council to come to the table with a serious offer.