Queensland's premier has defended bonus payments to drivers who show up for work during the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Drivers and guards will get one-off payments of $1250 to make sure they're on the job, with 600,000 extra visitors to the Gold Coast and six million extra trips on the train network expected during the Games.
Bonus penalty rates are also being offered to staff who work on their rostered days off.
Queensland Rail chief executive Nick Easy wouldn't say how much extra QR had budgeted to cope with additional services during the games, which include a trebling on the Gold Coast.
But Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk defended the measures on Friday, saying similar arrangements are often put in place for such events, including the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
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"If it's good enough for Sydney, it's good enough for Brisbane," Ms Palaszczuk told reporters.
The premier refused to say whether police officers should feel slighted for not being offered similar bonuses.
She said both the police service and QR had been given budgets for the event and it was up to them how they spent the money.
Deputy Opposition Leader Tim Mander said that sent a horrible message to all the other workers who were being asked to go above and beyond during the games.
"This is a classic example of the rail union once again holding this government to ransom," Mr Mander said on Friday.
Mr Easy said it was "a small price to pay for assurance and confident around service delivery".
"I think this is prudent, I think it's responsible and it is about delivering good services during what's going to be a ... major event and (place) very significant demands on our workforce," he told ABC radio.
