In a great victory for fairness Port Macquarie-Hastings Council following meetings the the USU, has confirmed they will maintain in-house Lifeguards.
Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Acting Human Resources Manager John Bradshaw confirmed with the union that they would be inviting applications for the 2008-09 seasonal lifeguard positions over coming weeks.
"This is a great victory for a fair go," said USU Secretary Ben Kruse. "It is important that seasonal lifeguards are able to secure employment for next summer and with applications to be resolved shortly they will be able to do that."
"This process is vital to maintaining the safe protection of beaches - it means Council and visitors to the beaches can be assured of the high quality professional lifeguards returning next summer, and importantly it also means that the Lifeguards can work through the winter months with secure employment for summer."
The union raised concerns with Council when there were indications that Council was undertaking discussions with Surf Life Saving Services, the contract arm of Surf Life Saving, regarding contracting out the Council Lifeguard Service and Council had made no moves to advertise for the following summer despite the current season drawing to a close.
The USU applauds the hard work of the volunteers at the local Surf Life Saving Club, however it is important to remember that there are 2 distinct roles between them and the professional Lifeguards and these roles form the great partnership which has given the community of Port Macquarie-Hastings the security of safe beaches.
The current group of Port Macquarie-Hastings Seasonal Lifeguards has a combined lifeguarding history of nearly 50 years. The process for selecting the Lifeguards who protect our beaches is rigorous and guarantees that the best Lifeguards are maintained to protect us.
The union is proud that these guardians of our beaches have been protected.
