The city’s rail system has been plagued by sporadic disruptions for months as unions and the state government remained at loggerheads over the future of the $2 billion intercity fleet.
Employee Relations Minister Damien Tudehope said he believed the latest deed would prove a turning point in the dispute,and he called on the union to show good faith.
“There is a deed ready to be signed by everyone,” he said. “We would expect the unions now to abandon the industrial activity … where they have held the commuters of Sydney to ransom over a long period of time.”
However,it was not until late on Wednesday,and just minutes before the government’s announcement,that unions were provided with a copy of the deed,giving them little time to assess the document and call off the six-hour stoppage planned for Thursday.
Earlier,Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) state secretary Alex Claassens signalled that there had been significant progress made in the dispute over the intercity fleet,but it had occurred too late to call off planned industrial action on Thursday.