• 2 days ago
Train commuters in Sydney have experienced more travel disruptions as the union’s pay dispute with the government deepens. The state government successfully blocked workers from taking further industrial action with a last-minute court injunction. But the legal action has potentially derailed hopes of a deal being struck any time soon.

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00:00A familiar announcement for Sydney commuters over the last five months.
00:09Customers, please allow extra travel time as delays and cancellations are expected across
00:14most of the network.
00:15Yeah, I'll be late today, yeah, I'll be definitely, I'll be late.
00:18It's affecting all of us here, and when are they going to finish this?
00:22After another fortnight of negotiations, the State Government and rail unions were still
00:27unable to agree on a new pay rise.
00:30So transport officials sought an 11th hour court injunction, banning members from taking
00:36any industrial action.
00:38We need to protect passengers, we need to keep our city moving.
00:42But it was too late to bring on extra services for the Monday morning rush.
00:47Overall, around 30% of the network was affected, with 75 trains delayed and at least 18 cancelled,
00:56mostly on the inner city and suburban lines.
00:59I'm sorry that we haven't been able to reach an agreement.
01:02How close they came, though, differs on who you ask.
01:05At the end of the day, the two sides were too far apart, and we can't just hand over
01:10a blank cheque.
01:11On Saturday night, we were within a whisker of reaching an agreement with the government.
01:15The injunction may have brought the government and commuters some reprieve, but the union
01:19says it's also pushed any prospect of a future deal being struck much further down the track,
01:26raising the potential for even more industrial action around Christmas time.
01:31But for now, services will return to normal, while both parties prepare for court later
01:37this week.

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