Bulletin 4 - negotiations update - issued 29 January 2026

In my last update on 4 September 2025, I advised that I made an offer for a new Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement. I am pleased to advise that following genuine consideration of all feedback from employees and bargaining representatives to the offer, I have made improvements to the offer for a new 2025 – 2029 Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement.

In November 2025, parties to the General NTPS Enterprise Agreement participated in a conciliation process with the Fair Work Commission. Following this, the Fair Work Commissioner provided recommendations to the parties which took into account the NTPS Enterprise Bargaining Policy 2025 - 2028 parameters in which the NTPS is authorised to operate.

I am now prepared to make an improved offer that provides a very generous remuneration package which recognises that Jacana Energy employees were also subject to the previous wages freeze in the last round of bargaining similarly to the General NTPS Enterprise Agreement, which was relevant to the Fair Work Commissioner’s recommendation referred to above.

The offer provides 3% per annum salary increase in the first 2 years and 3.5% per annum salary increase in the outer 2 years, providing real compounding wages growth of 13.65% over the life of the agreement, and considers the other priority claims presented for Jacana as raised by the union and bargaining representative.

If this offer is accepted when put to a vote, salary increases will be applied as follows:

• 3% from 17 November 2025
• 3% from the first pay period commencing on or after the first full pay period after 1 July 2026
• 3.5% from the first pay period commencing on or after the first full pay period after 1 July 2027
• 3.5% or CPI (whichever is higher) from the first pay period commencing on or after the first full pay period after 1 July 2028

Unlike other agreements where pay increases are generally aligned with the expiry of the agreement, I have agreed for pay increases to remain within July annually from 2026 if this offer is accepted when put to the employee vote.

Further Improvements

The below summarises the improvements of my offer:

Read the detail of the full offer PDF (539.6 KB)

Jacana Top of Band Bonuses

I have agreed to a once off uplift to the Jacana Top of Band Bonus totalling the amount of $250. This increase is in recognition that there had not been an increase to these bonuses for some time.

Reduction of working hours

I have agreed to reduce the standard hours of work for a full-time employee from a 37.5 hour working week to a 36.75 hour working week, this results in a 9-minute reduction per day. This change is to commence from 9 April 2026 in line with Power and Water Corporation and Territory Generation.

Compassionate Leave

I am also putting forward an improvement to compassionate leave provisions to provide greater flexibility and support for employees during difficult circumstances. The proposed change will allow employees to access paid compassionate leave during periods of approved recreation leave. These enhancements are consistent with existing provisions and demonstrate our commitment to employee wellbeing and support.

Working from Home

Enhancements to working from home to provide that applications will be considered on their merit on a case-by-case basis with no pre-determined position on the frequency with which employees must work from home or the office.

Higher Duties Allowance

I have aligned the Higher Duties Allowance to the provisions of the NTPS General Agreement removing the requirement of eligibility after 5 consecutive days for the JL3 classification and below. This means that any employee who is performing higher duties at the JL3 or below may receive Higher Duties Allowance from the conclusion of the first day.

Redeployment and Redundancy

I have agreed to withdraw the employer claim for proposed changes to remove the 2-year provision for an employee to remain on the redeployee database.

Consultation on changes to By-Laws and Determination, and Inconsistent Provisions including Retrospective approvals

I have agreed to withdraw the employer claim to revert to the previous provisions that were outlined in the NTPS 2017–2021 Enterprise Agreement, this is inclusive of the proposed retrospective provisions.

Full details on this improved offer are available on the Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement Negotiations Page.

Next Steps

On 2 February 2026 you will be sent information regarding the proposed 2025 – 2029 Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement, including a link to the proposed agreement and an explanatory document highlighting the changes compared to your current agreement.

Hard copies of these documents will also be available throughout your workplace. This will provide you the opportunity to understand the offer and see what changes are proposed.

The ballot process will be conducted by Vero Engagement and Voting Solutions PTY LTD (Vero) and you will be sent an email link by Vero on 6 February 2026 which will provide your unique login credentials and details about how to cast your confidential vote.

Ballot Timetable

The ballot process will be conducted online by Vero Engagement and Voting Solutions PTY LTD (Vero) and the timeline is as follows:

The ballot count will be conducted inline at the Vero Voting office (5/100 Railway Road Subiaco WA 6008). I will advise employees of the ballot result via a Bulletin and a notice on the enterprise bargaining webpage for the Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement Negotiations.

More information

Bargaining updates will be posted to the OCPE webpage at Jacana Energy Enterprise Agreement Negotiations Updates

For further information on the proposed agreement or the ballot process, please contact your Jacana Energy HR Representative or you can contact OCPE via enquiries.ocpe@nt.gov.au.

Tim McManus
Delegate for the Commissioner for Public Employment
29 January 2026