A strike which led to staff being stood down at the Appin coal mine has entered its second week.
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Members of the Collieries Staff and Officials Association and miner South32 were unable to reach a resolution to the ongoing industrial dispute on Friday afternoon, August 19, meaning the strike will continue into next week.
"While talks were ongoing and South32 has indicated that they would consider their position on several matters raised by workers, unfortunately, no agreement was reached," CSOA lead organiser Belinda Giblin said.
Roughly 80 workers represented by CSOA and the Mining and Energy Union had chosen to strike after ongoing negotiations over pay and conditions broke down. At issue was access to time off on public holidays and annual leave during holiday periods such as Christmas.
Workers wanted these conditions to be included in the updated workplace agreement.
"This is about workers having a reasonable work/life balance where they can spend time with their families, take the kids on holidays, or care for sick relatives," Ms Giblin said at the outset of the strike.
"We are simply seeking to have those arrangements - which South32 says they are committed to - brought into the workplace agreement so they are guaranteed and can be enforced."
![CSOA staff on strike helped out at disability care provider Greenacres during the strike. Picture supplied CSOA staff on strike helped out at disability care provider Greenacres during the strike. Picture supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123041529/115cda54-7c69-4542-9553-d25fc9573b66_rotated_270.jpg/r244_0_1512_881_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Earlier in the week, a South32 spokesperson said the company had offered workers an "extremely competitive" pay rise offer of 6.3 per cent.
CSOA staff are also seeking a production bonus after sky-high profits from the company's Illawarra operations.
When workers elected to strike earlier in the week, South32 stood down sections of the Appin workforce not on strike due to safety requirements. It is unclear how many additional staff this has affected.
"This industrial action will impact our ability to supervise our underground workforce and meet our work health and safety obligations," the South32 spokesperson said.
"Given the critical safety role these supervisors play, and the uncertainty related to the industrial action, we have taken the unfortunate but necessary decision to make some parts of Appin Mine non-operational during this time."
The spokesperson said South32 was "disappointed" no agreement was able to be reached on Friday.
Workers will meet on Monday to discuss next steps.
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