Blame game for Newcastle's bus drivers

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Newcastle's transport operator are facing blame from all sides for workers being underpaid and mismanaged.

Transport Minister, Andrew Constance has put operator Keolis Downer on notice after bus drivers were again underpaid this week. They've reportedly failed to pay more than a dozen drivers their correct pay and entitlements.

It comes after more than 70 workers were underpaid last month.

But the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RBTU) are today putting the blame on Andrew Constance saying it's another example of his incompetence. The union is labeling the situation as disgusting and claim from day one workers haven't been paid correctly.

"The Transport Minister is the one who came out and announced privatisation and what a wonderful beast it was going to be and how things would improve and he's obviously given the tender to a company who can't put in place a payroll system that can correctly pay their employees," said President of the Tram and Bus union division of the RTBU David Woollams.

The RBTU have taken the issue to the Fair Work Commission to have a system put in place whereby the workers, once they realise they've been underpaid, can go to Keolis Downer and get the pay rectified.

"Workers shouldn't have to be doing that in the first instance, You can accept you know a couple of dollars here and so forth - but not when we're talking about $500 dollars. Most of us just live from pay to pay," said David Woollmans.

Keolis Downer's CEo Campbell Mason is hitting back at the union, saying they're working to fix the problem before the end of business today.

"It is our highest priority to correct those underpayments, there will be an off-cycle payroll made today to correct those payments but we are very apologetic to our staff and we appreciate how frustrating it is. And it is our highest priority to get the system fixed so we don't have a recurrence of these types of problems," said Campbell Mason.

He isn't passing any blame onto the Transport Minister.

"The Minister has made clear it is for us, Keolis Downer, to fix this problem and he's right it is our payroll and its up to us to get it fixed and its our highest priority to get it fixed."

Help Keep Our Beaches Clean.

BY DANIELLE RIES

The Litter Collective are holding one of their monthly beach clean ups this Sunday from 11am at Merewether Beach.

The clean up is to help create awareness about waste and pollution in Newcastle, as the campaign to ban single use plastic bags in NSW by the end of 2017 is rapidly growing.

Expected at the clean up are some candidates for the council elections representing various parties.

Randolph Wild from The Litter Collective says there are many ways the community can get involved.

"Come down to the beach and help with the clean up, its only for an hour and we're not going to get everything obviously. So come down with a pair of gloves and some commitment, its fun.

"The other ways, people can like our Facebook, its a very active Facebook page, and they can interact in that way. We also have monthly meetings, 6 o'clock on the first Tuesday, but that alters each month, but come to our monthly meetings and get involved".

He also says the clean up will help people understand more about littering.

"The clean up highlights our campaign to ban single use plastic bags in NSW by the end of this year, so we are campaigning for that. And a general sort of war on waste, and to raise awareness about peoples behavior about single use plastic in particular.

"Also talking about alternatives, other ways of doing things as apposed to producing things which are only for single use".

Merewether Beach. Credit- Visit Newcastle Website.

UON's Dr. Sarah Pearson named Australia's Innovation Leader

BY SARAH BARONOWSKI

University of Newcastle Pro-Vice Chancellor Industry Engagement and Innovation, Dr. Sarah Pearson has been appointed as Australia's Innovation Leader in the newly formed MIKTA Group.

Dr. Sarah Pearson [Image: UON]

The program brings leaders from Mexico, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Turkey and Australia (MIKTA) together to help drive global innovation and strengthen international relations.

MIKTA was first established in 2013 and is led by the Foreign Ministers of member countries who come from diverse backgrounds but share core values.

Dr. Sarah Pearson says she's thrilled to be representing the nation as she joins forces with other leaders to solve complex global problems.

"I think it's really exciting to be linking in with other countries around the world on innovation," she said.

"We've all got a lot to learn. It's sort of a space where we're all trying to grow and do different things so it's wonderful to be a part of Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey and Australia all trying to do this together."

She says the MIKTA Group has a range of short term and long term goals which support cooperation and growth between member nations.

"Short term is about connectivity so we've got innovation leaders from each of those countries all connecting and then longer term, we're thinking about how to make the most of our similarities and our differences. So, are there big challenges that we can solve together either social or economic or corporate that we can actually solve by putting the brains of all of our countries together?"

"[For instance] if we have some ideas in Australia which we think might work well in one of the other countries, we've now got those strong connections with those countries so [we can] connect those people to the right resources and routes to market."

The MIKTA Innovation Group visited UON's NeW Space City Campus just this week to explore Newcastle's role as a regional innovation ecosystem.

Two People Injured In Early Morning Smash At Salt Ash

BY IAN CROUCH

Traffic on Nelson Bay Road was thrown into chaos by a serious crash this morning.

Two cars collided near March Road just after 5.30am

A 24-year-old man driving one of the cars was was trapped for a short time before being freed.

He was flown to the John Hunter Hospital by the Hunter's Westpac Rescue Helicopter with possible hip fractures.

The 39-year-old female driver in the second car was taken by road ambulance to the John Hunter  with abdominal injuries.

Both drivers are reported to be in a stable condition.

Newcastle Bus Drivers Underpaid Again!

BY IAN CROUCH

Transport Minister, Andrew Constance has put Newcastle's private transport operator on notice after bus drivers were again underpaid this week.

The Herald reports Keolis Downer failed to pay more than a dozen drivers their correct pay and entitlements .

It comes after more than 70 workers were underpaid last month.

Andrew Constance has demanded the company rectify the problem, saying "Keolis Downer needs to fix this, and fix it quick".

Keolis Downer chief executive, Campbell Mason said there have been problems with the migration of data between rostering and payroll systems and an eight-person taskforce has been working to address the issues which have caused these problems.

It's the latest in a series of problems for the private transport operator, with several bus services cancelled in recent weeks due to drivers being off on sick leave. 

Man Dies In Single Car Crash At Buchannan

BY IAN CROUCH

A report is being prepared for the Coroner after a fatal smash near Maitland.

Emergency services were called to John Renshaw Drive, Buchannan at about 4.45pm on Thursday to find a Holden Commodore had crashed into a tree.

The driver, a 25-year-old man who was the sole occupant of the car, died at the scene.

Investigations are continuing and police are urging witnesses to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

5 Car Pile-Up Closes Tourle Street Mayfield West

BY IAN CROUCH

Tourle Street, Mayfield West has been re-opened to traffic after a 5 car pile up.

Police say four cars were stopped at roadworks at about 10.45pm on Thursday night when a truck crashed heavily into the last car stopped in the line-up.

This created a concertina affect, with the cars in front colliding nose-to-tail.

The rear car was badly damaged, however the driver escaped with only minor injuries and was taken to hospital for observation.

It's expected the truck driver will be charged over the incident.

Tourle Street was closed for almost three hours as a result of the crash.