ANMF (Vic Branch) was formally notified late on Friday 15 January that current Support for Aged Care Workers in COVID-19 (SACWIC) funding will soon cease. This funding allowed for single site employment arrangements to be re-introduced for private residential aged care facilities in the following suburbs: Brighton, Doveton, Glen Waverley, McKinnon, Mordialloc and Moorabbin. The Commonwealth Government has made this decision based on current risk and decreasing case numbers in the Victorian community.
Please note that this announcement has no bearing on public aged care facilities which still have single site employment arrangement (funded by the Victorian government) in place until the end of February 2021.
What happens now?
These directions do not change the requirement for providers to, as much as practicable, limit employees to one site. Where this is not practicable the provider must demonstrate systems of work (e.g. rosters) to minimise the number of workers working across sites. Where the worker has more than one employer, the obligation to declare that you work at more than one site (if you do) continues. In the event of an outbreak at one of those sites, specific restrictions prevent employees working at any other site immediately until they have had a period of isolation (14 days) and a negative COVID-19 test result.
Members should begin preparation for a return to working at more than one site if that is what you were doing before the restrictions were put in place, unless you choose to cease working at multiple sites. If you intend to cease working at multiple sites you should notify your other employer/s as soon as possible that you will not be returning.
Please note the current grant activity is intended to last up until January 29. If members foresee any potential rostering issues, we encourage you to raise them with your employer without delay, and ANMF as required.
Need support or advice
Members who need support or advice transitioning back to multi-site employment can make contact the ANMF Member Assistance service via https://anmfvic.asn.au/memberassistance
Current protective equipment guidance for residential aged care
All workers are to wear surgical masks AND eye protection at all times.
Tier 3 PPE (including N95 masks) is required for staff when they are entering the rooms of or providing care to symptomatic, suspected or confirmed COVID residents. (Source DHHS factsheet ‘Residential Aged Care Restrictions’, 31 December 2020 via https://bit.ly/2JKy5VQ )
See the DHHS conventional use of PPE guide (updated 14 December 2020) for information about PPE tiers via http://bit.ly/3g5d96m
Got a colleague not receiving ANMF emails?
If you have an ANMF colleague who is not receiving these newsflash emails, please pass this on and let them know they can re-subscribe via https://www.anmfvic.asn.au/resubscribe
Encourage your colleagues to join ANMF
Please invite your aged care nursing and personal care worker colleagues to join their union so they have access to support, advice and information about their employment. Let them know they can join via https://www.anmfvic.asn.au/join
