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Home » 2008 » #757 » Australian News » Nurses vote on new award

Trench Nightgale

On June 26, NSW Nurses Association branches voted in favour of the pay and conditions offer and classification review offer made by the NSW health department. The first 3.9% pay rise will happen in early July. There are some improvements to conditions; notably, part-timers can choose to increase their contracted hours to the average actually worked over the preceding 12 months.

NSW Health delayed negotiating until the current award was about to expire on June 30. This meant that nurses would remain on the old award until a new award was agreed upon, which could take up to a year.

The duration of the new award has been increased from one to two years. It will require the next round of negotiations to take place just prior to the next state election. The “Fair Conditions, Fair Pay, Nurses Stay” campaign is continuing, with two issues being taken to arbitration: a push for an increase in night shift rates and financial reward for experienced nurses.

Nurses in the Hunter New England Area Health Service (HNEAS) have strongly opposed the attempt to introduce “Responsive Rostering” — pattern rosters. After a meeting with the Union Specific Consultative Committee (USCC), the NSW Industrial Relations Commission has ordered that the implementation be put “on hold”, pending research into rostering systems currently in use.

The next meeting of the USCC on July 11 will review progress in the research process. Meanwhile, nurses are urged to write to the HNEAHS explaining how pattern rosters would impact upon them.

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