I acre for the RTA, it was the DMR when I came on board, it was kind to me, I had gone broke in small business, was always a hard workers.
I build a life on its payments, bought a house learned a great deal.
Let us look at unions involvement.
I construction gang delegate was up on a high scaffold, called for a full time employee to throw me up some clips, he refused.
Time and again I climbed down loaded up with clips and finished the job.
EVERY man in that team wanted me a casual to get him sacked.
Boss told me, union delegate he could not said union would not allow it.
Years after I was team leader and senior delegate, he was in my team, drunk every day.
Again after official written request handed to the boss by my official and me, they refused to sack him why?
Next post explains but give union credit it had No control over awful management.
Today much more than half the workforce are equal to any, those unwilling to work, outside offices, a real life yes minister place, are protected.

In the 1950,s government jobs had reserved for returned soldiers written all over them.
Not just in NSW it is much the same every place.
In the 1960,s fortnightly pay drove many, to avoid those jobs.
But pork barreling was alive in all party's.
Unwritten but unbreakable rule said some jobs country towns for sure went to those who would never get a job any other way.
Many made great workers some proved it was right they would never get a job without that one.
Supervisors foremen and such got jobs based on anything but management skills.
Fathers handed down such jobs to sons family's controlled employment 11 of one family worked in one yard.
1991 bought change workers welcomed it with open arms.
But the weeds the non performers unwanted more by workmates than any one survived.
Ask any RTA out door worker[ not you JF] they believe the weeds are protected so managers unable to manage can point to poor workers, let me unionist forever say right now I would have applauded removal of these flees so a start could be made on fixing this shambles.
I cry not for my past jobs, but because my mates in the RTA need more than ever to be helped over come the slanderous lie they are the problem.
I think some fine foremen need to be let run the show, remember I looked after the private contractors building our new roads, they are getting it right and employing the best of the RTA.
would any one believe a boss took VR went in to private Enterprise failed then came back to the RTA on higher wages? these folk blame workers they rarely know for problems they created.

on the south coast of NSW a contract for cleaning has been paid every month for far more than ten years.
No work ever took place,you will not hear of it but it is true.
Those well developed contractors doing good work with well paid teams lost the contract.
To some one who brings men 200klm to do the job, badly.
The brand new employee who wrote that contract left his position unchallenged, do you think he is working for that contractor? or is there a close family tie there?
If you are concerned about a contract, if you write to a NSW minister, he/she will ask,,,, the very person you question to answer for him.
We are third world in affect the contracting out hides behind the lie workers are the problem and two office staff maybe more exist for every out door one.

Belly,

Your experience with the RTA using contractors is common amongst the civil service who could not organize a booze up in a brewery. Just look at the complete stuff up of the BER under Julia Gillard where the costs were double those of the private sector.

Contracting is used successfully where there are either specialized tasks, or the workload is fluctuating, and is generally far cheaper than employing people.

Contracting will also become far more popular now that Labor's new laws have made it more expensive to hire permanent staff.

Belly I believe you. Something I am trying to get throught to
Pelican on another thread, is the problem always comes back to
the fundamantals of human nature.

Fact is that when there are no checks and balances, people will
invariably become complacent, fat and lazy, feathering their
own nests along the way. Not just in Govt, in private enterprise
too, when there is a lack of competition.

Govt depts by their very nature, usually function as monopolies
in their duties. Staff don't have a financial stake in them,
nobody wants to rock the boat or change anything. Just let sleeping
dogs lie and cash in the handsome paycheck each week. Taxpayers
just cough up, decade after decade.

It is incredibely difficult to sack public servants, or even to
move them to a lower paying job. Alot of these people spend their
whole lives with one department, they intend to retire from there.
They don't want any changes or to rock the boat that supports their
cushy lifestyle.

The only solution that I can think of is, what some companies do
every few years in Europe. They bring in somebody intelligent,
objective and financially literate from outside. These people
go through the whole system, talk to everyone from workers to
bosses, then impliment changes as required. It sure rocks the
boat, but it also brings about huge benefits. The same could
be done with govt depts.

Shadow minister, yabby, I am not joking.
Truly believe if you two and hasbeen ran the NSW RTA, no one else.
Took away all control from the public service, every thing.
Asked me or one of a hundred workers for advice.
Costs could be cut in half in one year,productivity doubled for that sum.
Now truly, I never had a job I did not give my best to,but nothing can convince this mob to hear the voices of its workers.
We must all understand better work out comes mean safe jobs and tax payers should get much better .
I question the need for so many public servants, our biggest international road construction contractors do without even close to a tenth of the number of office sitters and do much better too.