Queensland intervenes on rail raises
The Queensland Government has intervened to stop Queensland Rail (QR) executives from receiving pay rises worth millions.
The QR board recently approved bonuses of up to 15 per cent for about 380 senior staffers.
State Transport Minister Mark Bailey had earlier advised that no bonuses were to be paid until QR restored services in full. He said he was outraged when he found out he had been ignored.
“I was furious and I think commuters would be furious as well, so I made the point very clear, so that's why a directive was issued at the earliest possible time by myself and the Deputy Premier to stop this occurring and it won't go ahead,” Mr Bailey said.
“I think the board has made a decision which is a serious error of judgement and it's been rectified immediately by this Government.
“I think it's an appalling decision to be clear and we've acted straight away to reverse it.
“Until the timetable is restored and commuters have got their usual service back, I think it's unreasonable for the senior Queensland Rail executives to be giving themselves bonuses.”
Mr Bailey acknowledged that the rail network had shown some showing signs of recovery, but said a lot more work had to be done before services were fully restored.