Cloncurry Mayor Greg Campbell said he waiting for the Aurizon consultation period to finish so he could find out who was impacted by the job cuts in Cloncurry.
“As a council we can talk to them and offer them our support,’ Cr Campbell said.
“Aurizon aren’t able to give me those names yet, unlike Hughenden it’s not as big an impact.”
There is some confusion about exactly how many roles in Cloncurry would be redeployed by Aurizon after its contract finishes up with Aurizon at the end of January.
In a statement to the North West Star the company said there would be a net reduction of one job in Cloncurry however according to the Rail, Tram and Bus Union union the document provided to the employees advised that the company was considering eliminating seven positions at Cloncurry which includes the closure of the local Rollingstock Maintenance depot.
However Cr Campbell has an explanation for the discrepancy.
“There are some offsets into the future with six new positions but the seven that are affected may not be eligible for those new jobs,” he said.
“So we’ve got to remember there is essentially there is seven people affected who will be out of work.
Cr Campbell attended the railway workers meeting in Hughenden last week with Robbie Katter MP and fellow north west mayors Jane McNamara of Flinders Shire and John Wharton of Richmond.
“We’re in Hughenden to show we’re in this together,” he said.
“Aurizon operates across the corridor and all our communities are linked by the highway and the railway line.”
Cr Campbell gave cautious support to Cr Wharton’s place to penalise road freight to get it back on the rail.
“We’re supportive of putting freight on the railway line, our road network is under pressure,” he said.
In the same interview with the mayor, he also spoke about Cloncurry’s upcoming 150th birthday celebrations in 2017.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
