Epworth Medical Imaging members take protected industrial action in June 2025.
Earlier this year, ANMF (Vic Branch) lodged its first dispute in the Fair Work Commission under the intractable bargaining provisions introduced into national law in 2023. The dispute related to the ongoing bargaining for a new agreement to cover members at Epworth Medical Imaging (EMI).
In plain English, we asked the Commission – the nation’s highest industrial decision-making body – to resolve the agreement negotiations by making a fair determination.
Under the law, bargaining that has been ongoing for at least nine months without making due progress and does not have any reasonable prospect of achieving an agreement can be considered intractable. It is ANMF’s view that bargaining for the new EMI agreement has become intractable, as per this definition. EMI, however, did not believe that bargaining has become intractable. The Commission agreed with EMI, meaning bargaining will resume.
How did we get here?
ANMF (Vic Branch) began negotiating with EMI in September 2024, but could gain little ground. In June 2025 members felt it necessary to take protected industrial action to progress their claims.
EMI nurses have not received a wage increase since July 2024, and their wage rates are already well behind the nursing industry standard.
In the weeks before the Commission hearing, EMI informed ANMF that it would offer an improved agreement to employee vote. This was their fourth formal attempt. While the offer significantly improved from earlier iterations it would have still left nurses employed at EMI/Radiology Victoria well below their colleagues employed in the public and private sector.
As such, ANMF did not recommended the new proposed agreement. Members voted no. For the fourth time.
