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Six Commonwealth public service agencies, including the Finance Department, have had to promise not to rip-off their workers under workplace agreements that failed the statutory basic fairness test. The agencies have given "undertakings" to the Fair Work Commission after their enterprise agreements, developed under the Coalition's hard-line public service industrial policy, had failed the meet the commission's "better off overall" test. The exemptions to the BOOT were revealed to a Senate committee in Canberra on Friday. The committee also heard that another agency, the Australian Research Council, had an agreement knocked back by the government's workplace enforcer, the Public Service Commission, 17 times before it was eventually given permission to sign a deal with its staff. The Community and Public Sector Union revealed at Friday's hearing of the Senate's Standing Committee on Education and Employment, examining the government's approach to public service bargaining, that the six agencies had been allowed to execute EAs that failed the basic fairness test. But a Coalition member of the Senate said she was quite surprised at the "generous nature" of workplace conditions and entitlements already available to public servants. The disputes across the Australian Public Service are now well into their third year and more than 97,000 government workers, from a workforce of about 150,000, are still without new enterprise agreements to replace deals that ran out in mid-2014. It was revealed on Friday that agencies had had to resort to a clause in The Fair Work Act that allows agreements to be registered even if they fail the basic fairness standard tests, if the employer gives an undertaking to grant concessions outside of the agreements. The union says the Department of Communications had to give several guarantees, including one to pay casual loading and Finance had to give an undertaking to pay government Comcar drivers at least the award rate. The Industry Department had to promise its casual workers would be paid the award rate on Sundays and the Synchrotron in Melbourne had to undertake to pay its shift workers and junior employees at least the award rate. The Australian Law Reform Commission had to undertake that that none of its employees would be directed to work overtime because there is now no overtime loading and ASIC had to give undertaking on additional leave for shift workers. Speaking after the committee hearings, CPSU National Secretary Nadine Flood said the failure of some deals to meet the BOOT underlined the "harsh" bargaining policy. "It demonstrates how harsh and unreasonable this government's approach that six agreements that have been put up, do not even pass the basic legislative test of workers being better off overall at minimum award standards," the union leader said. But Aaron Lane, legal fellow with the right-wing Institute of Public Affairs, told the committee that public servants already enjoyed generous entitlements that he believed would not pass the "pub test". "The Department of Defence have what's called the Defence Day; you get to take a day off, no reason, nothing required, it's not part of your annual leave, it's not part of your sick leave, it's not part of your personal leave, you just take a day off when you feel like it," Mr Lane told the senators. Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie expressed the view several times throughout Friday's hearings that public servants already enjoyed "incredibly generous" conditions and entitlements. "It is quite surprising, when you drill down to the detail, the generous nature of these agreements," Senator McKenzie said.

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