St Vincent’s members’ meeting
Friday 21 February 2025, 2.30pm
Online via MS Teams. Please see the emailed version of this EBA update for the meeting link.
This meeting will discuss a progress report on negotiations since ANMF members rejected St Vincent’s Private Australia’s revised offer on 7 February and will consider the next steps in your protected industrial action campaign.
Members have paused stage 2 protected industrial actions including bed closures, rolling stop works and theatre cancellations in good faith to support intensive negotiations since 7 February.
ANMF members continue to emphasise the importance of having clauses in the EBA for improved staffing levels in key areas on key shifts to improve workloads, patient safety and ensure members can take their rest and meal breaks.
It is critical that as many members as possible attend this meeting to ensure you are part of the discussions and decisions about the next steps of your campaign.
Negotiations
There have been discussions on Tuesday 18 February and further discussions are scheduled for Thursday 20 February. While there has been some welcome movement from St Vincent’s Private Hospitals Australia (SVHA) in relation to its offer of additional guaranteed shifts in the five priority areas (post-natal, birth suites, neuro, paediatrics and Kew overnight):
- those additional shifts are not yet sufficient to cover the needs in those areas (although SVHA is looking further at whether it can extend the extra shifts in these priority areas);
- there is currently no willingness to look at a second tranche of staffing improvements in 2026 as proposed by ANMF. We have asked SVHA to seriously reconsider this position in terms of what could be introduced later in the agreement.
- they will not prescriptively insert standards such as ACORN, ANZCZA or ACPAN as the basis of rostering in theatres and PACU in the agreement.
ANMF has asked SVHA to consider the above critical matters in any new proposal they intend to put forward. SVHA tell us they will have a proposal in writing to us by Thursday morning.
As part of ANMF’s counter proposal to SVHA, we provided rough costings of about $650,000 for 2025/2026 for 16 extra shifts (on top of their already costed additional staffing of 8 shifts). That would be about $680,000 in 2026/2027. The second tranche of 39 additional shifts would be around $1.95m for 2026/2027 – an additional $3.3m in staffing over the two years and on-going. We also asked for the reintroduction of RUSONs/RUSOMS at a cost of about $250,000. This compares to a total wages’ expenditure under the enterprise agreement currently of about $200m. If this modest investment in staff improves job satisfaction and reduces the use of agency shifts (which will save money) then that is money well spent.
ANMF did suggest to St Vincent’s Private that to free more funding for additional night staffing that the timing of proposed wage increases could be reconsidered (without detracting from the 11.5% total wage increase and in view of their stated financial position). This would potentially affect the 1 February 2025 increase (which might be delayed for example to 1 May or 1 June) and the 1 July 2026 increase (which might be delayed until 1 October or 1 November). The St Vincent’s Private registered and enrolled nurse wages would still reach the public sector rate well ahead of 26 November 2026 when public sector rates increase. SVHA says it has rejected this idea on the basis that staff have reacted negatively during their Executive ‘walk around’ discussions over the last few days. There are clearly mixed views about this proposal.
Members can advise ANMF of your views via this short survey via anmfvic.asn.au/StVsPsurvey by 1pm Friday 21 February.
PROTECTED INDUSTRIAL ACTION UPDATE
ANMF reminds members that protected industrial action continues. This includes:
- all stage one protected industrial actions (items 1–19 on the protected industrial action ballot order)
- refusal to undertake food services related to the delivery of meals, snacks or beverages (item 20)
- a ban by any nurse/midwife in charge of a ward or unit from taking a patient load (item 26)
ANMF members voted to pause bed closures, stop works and theatre stoppages since 25 January as a sign of good will to support meaningful negotiations.
See Update #20 (anmfvic.asn.au/StVPupdate20) for the full list of protected industrial action.
Members at the meeting on Friday 21 February will consider St Vincent’s Private management’s revised offer if any and the next steps in your protected industrial action campaign.
ANMF Organisers and staff continue to visit members in the workplace to support your ongoing protected industrial action.
GOT A CAMPAIGN ISSUE OR INQUIRY
If you need to get in touch with your ANMF Organiser please contact them via records@anmfvic.asn.au.
If it is an emergency call the numbers on the PDF or emailed version of this update..
St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Fitzroy
Mitch Hoover
St Vincent’s Private Hospital, East Melbourne
Mitch Hoover
St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Kew
Narelle Hayes
St Vincent’s Private Hospital, Werribee
Hailee Love
