ANMF (Vic Branch) can report that nurses and midwives employed by Healthscope have voted up the new enterprise agreement. The agreement will now progress to the Fair Work Commission for approval. The new agreement, including all improved terms and conditions of employment, will apply 7 days after approval at the Fair Work Commission.
ANMF Job Representatives and members have led and engaged in such a strong campaign to achieve significant improvements. Members’ next steps will be to ensure that that the changes that have been achieved in the agreement are implemented and applied. This means ensuring that you understand the changes in entitlement, ask questions if something does not seem to have been implemented correctly and involve the ANMF if things cannot be resolved in the workplace.
Members can continue the momentum from their activism during bargaining by;
- Becoming an ANMF Job Rep:
- Becoming a Health and Safety Representative
- Make sure you are properly trained via ANMF training resources in being a Job Rep and/or HSR
- Inform Job Reps of issues specific to your ward so that these can be escalated and addressed through new agreement consultation mechanisms.
- Know your rights under the new enterprise agreement
- Engage with your ANMF Industrial Relations Organisers to ensure your industrial issues and concerns are raised and addressed during the life of this agreement.
- Keep posting and connecting about staffing issues on your ward and unit within your networks – we know these groups have been a really effective and fruitful means of organising across the sites throughout the bargaining process.
Again, we want to thank the Healthscope Job Representative group, particularly those involved directly in the negotiations.
