CASH CRISIS LOOMS: Australian Banking System Teeters on Brink of Chaos as Transport Workers Union Endorses Major Strike
- Victorian and Tasmanian cash-in-transit workers set to walk off the job, sparking fears of cash shortages at banks and businesses
- Union blames declining safety standards and operating models for “crisis levels” in the industry
- Strike action could spread to NSW and Queensland, leaving millions without access to cash
Australians are bracing for a cash crisis as the Transport Workers Union (TWU) announces a major strike by cash-in-transit workers in Victoria and Tasmania. The industrial action is expected to cause “major disruptions to cash deliveries, potentially affecting ATMs, banks and retail businesses,” with the union warning that “cash stops” when the strikes come into effect.
The TWU claims that declining safety standards and operating models have reached “crisis levels” in the industry, with workers facing significant contracting pressures from customers, including major banks. “Cash-in-transit is one of the most high-risk jobs in the transport industry, with dangers only increasing,” the union said in a statement.
Michael Kaine, TWU National Secretary, warned that over 500 workers had made it clear they needed a fair deal, saying “they’ve done the heavy lifting in this industry and their pay has languished while the banks make billions.”
In a stark warning, Sam Lynch, TWU Victorian and Tasmanian Director of Organising, said: “Every dollar that reaches a shop counter or cash machine is because these workers get it there… When they stop, cash stops.” Lynch added that it was “time that cash handling companies Armaguard and Prosegur recognise the value of Cash-In-Transit workers and the risks they deal with every day on the job.”
The strike will see cash-in-transit workers stop working overtime or on weekends, before spreading to 24-hour work stoppages across four days if an agreement isn’t struck. Workers in NSW and Queensland have also voted in support of industrial action and are discussing further actions, sparking fears of a nationwide cash crisis.
As Australians face the very real possibility of cash shortages, the TWU has called on all industry participants, including Armaguard, banks, and retailers, to pay their fair share to fund decent jobs for workers and keep the cash-in-transit industry sustainable.