This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Local employees at the Australian-funded immigration centres on Manus Island have walked off the job over low pay and poor working conditions following sustained scrutiny of Paladin’s $423m contract with the federal government.

A petition from the Papua New Guinean employees of Pomwan Paladin Security, addressed to Paladin management, said the staff had shown “dedication and loyalty” to the firm but were now being treated unfairly.

It claimed the employees were underpaid, with no risk allowances added to the rates of $2-$3 an hour, or overtime paid for shifts of up to 12 hours, and that those who had transitioned from jobs with the former contractor Broadspectrum had had their pay cut.

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Hundreds of employees walked away from their work and staged a sit-in in Lorengau on Tuesday morning.

“Our petition had been raised and we want Paladin to meet our demands,” one employee said.

They said employees were told a Paladin national manager would be flying in to meet them on Tuesday afternoon.

Guardian Australia was told employees of Pacific International Hospital – the contracted health clinic for asylum seekers and refugees – as well as cleaning staff and bus drivers, also walked off the job because they had no security.

Paladin took over garrison services for the refugee and asylum seeker cohort on Manus Island from Broadspectrum in 2017, when the detention centre was closed and the hundreds of men were moved into three separate accomodation units.

There has been a renewed focus on the size of the contract given to Paladin Solutions to run garrison services on Manus Island, with many now questioning the $423m price tag and the limited tender process run by the Australian government.

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In the petition, the Paladin workers demanded pay rises for all local staff, overtime for long shifts and the provision of three meals a day. They gave Paladin three days to respond, promising “further planned actions” if the demands were not met.

“During the transition from Lombrum to Lorengau we were compensated well in terms of our wages/salaries,” it said. “However wages were dropped and till now, no increments were implemented to help with the burden of working long hours.”

It said workplace health and safety were compromised by employees having to work inside hot containers for hours. “We’ve had issues of employees feeling faint and sick. There [is] limited supply of water for use.”

The petition also complained about the amount of food supplied for workers on 12-hour shifts and frequently referred to the damage done to the image of Manus Island and its population.

“We also do believe that [the] once peaceful Manus Island and its people has been a centre of attention for media propaganda, political gimmick and negative image portrayal in the face of domestic, national and international community at large, whilst playing host to the asylum seekers since 2012,” it said.

“We therefore believe that a good deed in the form of compensation to the Paladin waged employees will gain and restore some lost pride and also portray a positive image of Paladin.”

Early reporting at the time of Paladin’s engagement suggested Fijian workers Paladin had intended to hire as guards would be paid about F$4,480 per month (A$3,000).

That attempt to bring in foreign workers sparked tension on Manus Island and a standoff with another security provider who felt his company, Kingfisher, should have been given the contract.

Paladin declined to comment on the petition or answer specific questions around the pay and conditions of its workforce. It directed Guardian Australia to its previous statement, which said the company engaged with communities “wherever” it works.

“We understand our guard force in Manus under Pomwan Paladin Security Limited to be among the highest trained and highest paid in Papua New Guinea (Security Industry Authority 2018),” it said.

“Our partnership success story under the Pomwan Paladin Joint Venture with Manusian businessman Rodney Pokapin should be celebrated and encouraged. We are proud of what can be achieved when working with local communities and we employ over 97% PNG nationals across our workforces.”

The protesters said in a statement: “We have many requests to improve our working conditions. Many of these are quite simply promises made by Paladin that have not been kept.

“We are the rightful citizens of this nation island being affected. We are truly being underpaid and being overworked and not compensated fairly.”



