Latest developments in the industrial arena of interest to our industry follow:   HOLCO/TURNERS SETTLE NEW AGREEMENT   A Union Collective Agreement has been completed with Meatpak Australia's two sites, Holco at Cavamn and Turners at Underdale.   The agreement covers about 100 workers in butchery, prepackaging and deliveries.   This is a 4 year deal that delivered large increases to the lowest paid workers, up to 24%.   The butchers achieved an 18.2% increase over the 4 year term.   This agreement is quite a family friendly agreement with various provisions for leave without arduous certification requirements.   It also cements a good deal of paid time off during the day for breaks for the workers.   This deal comes hot on the heels of the Teys agreement at Naracoorte that lifted the rates of pay for labourers to provide a lowest rate of $17.00 per hour on a full time basis (not casual).   Most of the labourers there are at $17.50 per hour with boning room packers at $18.50 per hour for full time permanent workers.   The deals at Holco/Turners and Teys again show the difference between non union deals and union deals.   When it comes to dollars and cents a union collective deal will always outshine a non union deal and when you are talking about conditions for work, non union deals don't come within a bulls roar of a union collective agreement.   Please feel free to post this bulletin on the notice board at work for members to peruse.   AWARD WORKERS GET PAY INCREASE   All workers being paid under the award have been granted a pay rise by the Fair Pay commission as of the first of October 2008.   This also means that the workers who are still under the award at sites where AWA/ITEA's are in force will get the pay rise but workers under the  AWA/ITEA do not.   The rise was $21.66 per week or a 4.15% increase to the minimum wage.   As a general guide this takes the minimum award rate for slaughterers and boners to $16.08 per hour, slicers to $15.73 per hour, trimmers and knife hands to $15.43 per hour and all other general labourers to $15.04 per hour.   These are permanent weekly hire rates for a 38 hour week with paid smoko breaks and penalty rates applying to all work prior to 6am, or beyond 7.6 hours.   If you are getting less than these rates give the union office a call and we will look into it to see if workers are being underpaid.   GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES PAY ENQUIRY IN MEAT INDUSTRY   Whilst on the subject of underpayments the Government has advised the union that it will be sending inspectors specifically into the meat industry to target plants where workers are being underpaid.   This taskforce commences operations soon and has requested input from the union for the conduct of investigations.