Parliament House's incoming cleaning contractor was subject to a complaint it employed staff through another company in a move a union said risked letting it ignore entitlements for workers.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
United Voice wrote to the ACT Education Directorate last year asking it to act, saying cleaners were being employed by a company created a day after Dimeo Cleaning Services won the agency's contract to clean its buildings, and not subject to the contract's obligations.
A change of cleaning companies at Parliament House has left cleaners fearing their jobs could go, their sick leave will be cut or their shifts will change under Dimeo.
Some who have cleaned the building since it opened fear the new company could put them on probation and are unsure of receiving a redundancy if they don't get work.
Labor senator Sue Lines at a Senate estimates hearing on Monday referred to a letter United Voice wrote outlining a complaint about Dimeo after it won the ACT Education Directorate cleaning contract.
United Voice official Lyndal Ryan told the directorate that a company called Dimeo Cleaning Services (ACT) was registered the day after a contract between the ACT government and Dimeo Cleaning was executed.
The Education Directorate did not respond to a question before deadline asking how the complaint was resolved.
Ms Ryan, who met Dimeo on Thursday, told Fairfax Media the union wanted to see the company offer employment to all existing Parliament House cleaning staff.
"Thus far we have not been able to secure Dimeo Cleaning Services' written agreement to this," she said.
Dimeo had said they needed instructions from the Parliamentary Services Department when engaging with United Voice, Ms Ryan said.
"But when United Voice has sought simple information from DPS, such as the ABN number on the executed contract, they have referred us back to the company."
Department of Parliamentary Services officials at Senate estimates on Monday denied they had told Dimeo it could not speak to United Voice.
Ms Ryan said the cleaners were long standing permanent employees who needed to know that they still had a job when Dimeo started in July.
"They need to pay their bills and care for their families. They don’t have investment properties or wealthy friends who can bail them out," she said.
Dimeo referred questions to the Department of Parliamentary Services.
The department said last week the company had "expressed a desire" to offer jobs to existing cleaning staff and keep their conditions.
Dimeo won the $46 million contract to clean Parliament House inside and outside, and will replace internal building cleaner Limro in July after its 30-year stint.
