The long awaited ballot for the Community Health EA closed on Friday 20 February and we have now received results from all 31 Centres.
The average participation rate in the ballot was 82% meaning that just over 8 in 10 staff eligible to vote participated. This is a fantastic result indicating a very high level of engagement in the Campaign.
The Yes vote across the Centres was 99% with 25 Centres achieving a 100% Yes vote.
The VHIA will now send the Agreements to the Fair Work Commission for approval; Members will be advised as soon as we have a listing date.
“This is a hard fought and well deserved victory by our Community Health Professionals,” said VHPA Secretary, Craig McGregor.
The new Agreement will see pay rises across the board however the most significant increase will be for those employees sitting at the top of Grades 1, 2 & 3. Employees at the top of Grade 2 for longer than 12 months should automatically move to the new Grade 2, Year 5 increment. The rate of pay for these employees will shift from the current hourly rate from $36.57 to the new rate of $40.92 effective 1 January 2015.
“These salary increases are critical,” said McGregor “particularly given the extent to which these employees are underpaid relative to other health professionals.”
While wages tend to get top billing, the VHPA has made every effort to ensure that the new Agreement makes up for the disaster of the 2009 Agreement / Determination.
“Dispute settlement procedures and workplace change clauses are probably not the first parts of the Agreement that Members think about,” said Lead Organiser, Linda Jenkin. “But when push comes to shove these clauses need to be clear, strong and useful. In large part, this campaign has been about getting these fundamentals right. Members should be proud of what they have achieved here,” concluded Jenkin.
The results for each of the Community Health Centre ballots can be found here.