CUB55

In an outrageous act of corporate greed, 55 CUB workers were terminated without notice and then offered a take-it-or-leave-it non-union deal with a 65 per cent reduction in monetary entitlements and cuts to most of their hard-won conditions. 

The Abbotsford CUB brewery makes huge profits producing leading brands like VB, Crown Lager, Melbourne Bitter, Carlton Dry, Pure Blonde and Strongbow. 

It’s shameful that CUB workers are paying a price for being union and doing their job well, while SAB Miller (CUB's parent company) made $4.4 billion in profits this year and is currently part of the biggest ever corporate takeover in the history of the global beer industry. 

We need your support to call on CUB to reinstate the workers and end their shameful anti-worker, anti-union tactics.

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  • Send CUB a message
    At the direction of CUB, the 55 workers were called to a meeting and informed without prior notice that they were terminated. The workers were then ‘invited’ to reapply for their jobs with a company called Catalyst Recruitment, which is in the Programmed/Skilled Group. The invitation to apply for a job: - came with no guarantees; - would be on individual contracts; - would be covered by a barely compliant non-union EBA; - would result in in a massive loss of terms and conditions, including an approximate 65% reduction in monetary entitlements. CUB knew that their greedy money grab actions would not go down well with the workers or the ETU, so it had sneakily pre-organised the engagement of a company called "5 Star Electrical Services" to provide replacement workers, at rates that severely undercut the sacked workers. So CUB, just like Patricks during the Waterfront dispute, have rid itself of its committed union workers and the hard fought terms and conditions, and have replaced it with a temporary cheap non-union labour force. CUB and Programmed/Skilled are now trying to force the sacked workers to forego their work/life balance and existing hard fought terms and conditions, in order to “maybe” get some form of their job back. The 55 long-time and loyal CUB workers are holding firm against this unprovoked attack on their jobs and rights - and the ETU will stand with them all the way. Having had their livelihoods ripped away from them overnight, these workers have been left with no way to support their families or meet their commitments. We're looking to other union members to step up and lend these workers a hand, to help get them through these tough times so they can continue to stand strong against CUB's deceitful and malicious conduct. There is an important principle at stake in this fight, one that affects the security of all our jobs. Please help support these workers as they resist this attack on their rights - and on your rights.
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