See Sydney Channel 9 News and MSN News reports today 1/12/21. A number of short bus strikes at peak hours on Thurs. 2/12/21 and Fr. 3/12/21 and next Monday 6/12/21 24 hr strike when a union meeting is to be held - presumably not a mass meeting but depot union meetings via zoom and so maintain bureaucratic control by the union bosses of the TWU (Transport Workers Union) and the RTBU (Rail Tram & Bus Union) and of course intimidate workers by depot management.
Anyway it shows the latest Sparks www.sparksweb.org has out manoeuvred the TWU/RTBU officials and bosses/Govt. foiling significantly the likely January 2021 TWU 'summer carnival' exposed in the latest edition. An industrial campaign set up to fail in the bosses down time during the holiday period. To divert attention from the Liberal NSW Govt's privatisation of Eastern Sydney State Transit Bus Depots. The campaign would end in failure and so demoralise bus drivers generally and facilitate the big cut backs in bus drivers' wages after privatisation. Meanwhile raising the fake militant profile of the TWU which through a dirty back room ALP (Australian Labor Party) deal was given coverage under the Industrial Relations Racket of the bus drivers in these depots who had been members of the RTBU.
There is further major
There is further major industrial action affecting public transport in Sydney/NSW. A 24 hour rail strike on Tues. 7th Dec. when there is also a teachers strike and rally outside NSW Parliament. RTBU officials were criticised in the latest Sparks over taking industrial action over the ongoing enterprise bargain agreement campaign during the bosses' "down time" of the COVID-19 lockdown period. One reason for this action apart from the officials worries about growing grass roots discontent is for them to get the industrial action out of the way before the upcoming NSW State Elections to help the ALP(Australian Labor Party) electoral fortunes. The date of the elections has not been advised as ye but would likely occur next year. So we are looking at a strike wave of sorts with much bureaucratic manipulations and agendas but also growing grass roots disgruntlement and good work by the ASN assisting the grass roots via helping expose the machinations of the union bosses and facilitating militants agitation.
Correction to the above report on the buses, should "read January 2022 TWU 'summer carnival"
See article: "Rail workers'
See article: "Rail workers' strike: Commuters warned of massive train disruptions" in Sydney Morning Herald 3/12/21 page 3 and on MSN Sydney News today. There is an interesting and unheard of development in the industrial action in the buses - on the day of the rail strike Tues. 7/12/21 there is also going to be a strike affecting buses in the far western suburbs of Sydney - involving private bus depots which had never been part of the STA. However 22/5/21 Telegraph article see latest RW for shadowing the campaign stated it was only to involve privatised parts of the STA despite other private depot bus workers conditions being very bad . While the union hierarchy for decades have successfully prevented combined rail and bus strikes. Now it is occurring but not in other parts of Sydney involving the buses. This latest development seems to point to a grass roots push/inspiration in these far western bus depots to take action to improve conditions. Some such as Transit Systems Smithfield depot and Hillsbus have been foci of major wildcat action in the past.