Episode 3: The 2021 public sector enterprise agreement negotiations

Transcript

Transcribed by Lake Majstorovic

All information cited was accurate as of the time of recording (September 2021).

[Lively electric guitar theme music plays.]

Sarah Hathway: You know, there has been a lot of respect and recognition given to nurses and doctors and paramedics, but not enough respect and recognition for Allied Health Professionals.

[Theme music volume lowers as speaking begins.]

Female voice-over: Welcome to the VAHPA Voice, the podcast for all Victorian Allied Health Professionals from physiotherapists to radiographers, occupational therapists to social workers. This is the podcast for you and all Allied Health disciplines.

Allied Health Professionals can no longer remain the forgotten workforce.

[Theme music fades out.]

Rjurik Davidson: Welcome members to the VAHPA Voice, the podcast for Allied Health Professionals in Victoria, this is your Research and Communications Officer Rjurik Davidson, and with me, I have Andrew Hewat, the assistant secretary at VAHPA, and Sarah Hathaway, the Lead Organizer on our public sector bargaining campaign.

And, um, the bargaining campaign this year has got a theme of respect, recognition, and reward. And, Sarah, I was wondering if you might start off by giving us a little bit of a background behind these themes.

Sarah: Yeah, sure. Hi Rjurik, hi everyone. But yeah, the theme of respect, recognition, reward, I think, was something we were broadly thinking about before the Log of Claims survey went out to members.

But certainly, the responses we got back from members broadly sort of reinforced the theme of respect, as in respect for Allied Health as a profession and respect for Allied Health Professionals as workers in the sector. And hand-in-hand with that is recognition for the work that Allied Health Professionals do.

I’m sure all of us sat through the hundreds of pressers from Dan Andrews and other parliamentary officials over the last 18 months where there has been a lot of respect and recognition given to nurses, doctors, and paramedics, but not enough respect and recognition for Allied Health Professionals.

And the last element of this is reward. You know, it largely came through on the survey in terms of wages and remuneration, but it’s much broader than that. It’s broader than wages, it’s all the allowances, it’s being paid for the hours that Allied Health Professionals are working, and general entitlements. So, I think that broadly encapsulates where we’re going with the campaign.

Andrew Hewat: I think there’s one thing to add to that, Sarah, would be that we’re trying to get recognition, because Allied Health Professionals are the forgotten workforce. And as you said, the recognition is there for the– um, the other health professions, but too often, Allied Health is forgotten about and left out of the equation.

So, from our point of view, that’s a really important part of this campaign is to get the recognition and hopefully that will lead to the reward and get the respect that we deserve.

Rjurik: One the things you mentioned there, Sarah, was our recent member survey. I know a number of issues came up in that survey from members that included workload and staffing, and included career progression, included remuneration. How much of a surprise were– was it to see these issues come up from our members?

Sarah: Yeah, no, thankfully, uh, not a surprise. Yeah, definitely not a surprise for the for the organizers or– or the VAHPA officials. It’s certainly– it’s what we’ve been hearing from the ground all the way through COVID.

And, you know, these were issues before COVID in terms of workload, career progression. And I’d say particularly the workload and staffing issue is a problem that’s been exacerbated by COVID, but it was certainly an issue before in terms of, you know, excessive overtime, either paid or unpaid, short-staffing, Allied Health Professionals not being able to take their leave or access professional development, a whole range of things, that has just progressively become more and more of an issue.

So the fact that that was the top– the top, uh, problem that members pointed to, we certainly saw that coming, as well as career progression. We hear all the time from members that they feel stuck, whether that’s at the top of a Grade 1 or largely at the top of Grade 2, and so that was definitely confirmed.

I think from memory, there was a question in the survey along the lines of “how long have you been at your particular Grade level or at the top of your Grade”, and I think on average, the response was 10 years at the top of a Grade. But, you know, we’ve got some members that have been there for up to 20-25 years, and that definitely needs to be improved upon.

And remuneration. We– we all know, members know that bargaining time is the time to improve wages and remuneration, so I don’t think that was certainly not a surprise for us either.

Andrew: One of the issues that I, um, draw from the survey responses, that was actually quite alarming, and it comes out of what you were saying earlier about the workload issues and the stress in the workplace, was one of the questions that was posed about how you feel in your workplace in terms of whether you’re planning, you know, whether you want to leave your current employer, whether you’re thinking about leaving the profession completely.

And we had an overwhelming response from members saying that up to 60% of them wanting to leave their current employer and over 30% referencing that they’re thinking about leaving the profession, which is, you know, we’ve never seen numbers like that before.

And that’s a direct reflection of how… how bad the workplace environment currently is in terms of workload stress and pressure. And that’s, as we as you said, was a problem before COVID, but COVID has exposed that and it’s amplified it significantly. And so we’re making that a real– a real focus for this campaign.

Rjurik: I remember seeing those numbers, Andrew, when I was looking at the survey results, and just the number of Allied Health Professionals were talking about leaving the profession or leaving their employers, it really struck you when you had a look at it.

Did you want to talk a little bit about career progression and what our general attitude is towards it? What’s our general kind of principles upon which we’re sort of approaching the issue?

Andrew: I think it’s been, as Sarah said, it’s been an identified problem for some time. And it’s, for us, it’s something that we really need to work on. We did a lot of work in that previous Enterprise Agreement to improve the career structures, but that laid the foundations for where we are now, so we really need to build upon that.

So, there will be a significant focus through this enterprise bargaining process, to– to improve the career progression.

Rjurik: So this is something which I think will have its own podcast on– specifically on career progression at some point in the near future, along with a whole bunch of other podcasts, so keep an eye out for that.

Just in terms of the actual bargaining, public sector bargaining, where are we at with it? Where are we in the schedule and the process? Can you give the members just an idea of what– what’s going on?

Sarah: Yeah, definitely. I mean, well, we’ve been bargaining, we’ve commenced the bargaining process with the VHIA. So they’re at the table representing the 80-plus public sector employers across the state, and VAHPA has obviously been attending with our bargaining representatives.

So Allied Health Professionals like yourselves who are listening in have been representing you at the table, along with VAHPA officials. So far, we’ve been discussing the VHIA claims. And there’s certainly some– some interesting ones in there that [Laughs] VHIA are after in terms of allowances and that kind of thing.

But we’re just getting to the point now of getting ready to discuss our log and what we’re after. But I guess before we get to the good news, Andrew, if you wanted to touch on some of the things that VHIA are coming after.

Andrew: It’s– it’s quite alarming given these, you know, scenarios that we’ve been describing in terms of, you know, workloads and workplace stress for Allied Health Professionals, to think that the employees would be– even think it’s remotely acceptable to be trying to take away any conditions. And that’s exactly what they’re doing.

They, you know, one of the examples was, you know, meal allowances, talking about removing those in certain circumstances. You know, just, you know, fundamental entitlements that we’ve, you know, that we’ve had for many years, and they think that it’s acceptable to– to be attacking those.

And we– and we see that as outrageous, really, we just don’t think that’s acceptable. From our point of view, we don’t– we… we can’t accept going backwards, it has to be going forward.

Rjurik: On that note, we’ve put together our own Log of Claims based on feedback and information from our members. Would you like to talk a little bit about that Log of Claims? I know it’s gone out to members. Where is it at? What’s it got to say?

Sarah: Definitely, I think it’s a pretty impressive list. You know, I think I get– we’ve gotten the impression from the employers and VHIA that they thought this round of bargaining might be a bit of tinkering around the edges and– and maybe setting us backwards in some spots with a one and a half, or two and a half if we’re lucky, pay rise.

But I think certainly that’s not what we’re after. We’re going into this very ambitious, we’re not here to tinker around the edges, we want to significantly improve our Agreement. And I think, broadly, it’s about making Allied Health in the public sector an attractive career path. We want this to be an area where high school graduates want to go to uni and they want to study an Allied Health profession, and then when they graduate, they want to work

in the public sector.

Because if we don’t, um, if we don’t turn things around, certainly what we’re hearing from members is that we’re on a trajectory to possibly losing public sector Allied Health, because people are walking out the door for all the reasons we’ve already touched on.

So, um, I mean, in terms of making things more attractive, there’s a whole raft of new paid leave entitlements, improving existing leave. I think two of the most popular ones that keep coming up in meetings with members is the five weeks of annual leave, everyone’s very keen for that, as well as increasing personal leave entitlements.

There’s all the issues around career structure, which we will touch on in more detail. As well as job security, I think that’s a really important one, too, that has got a lot of traction with members. Specifically around fixed-term contracts, which is becoming more of more and more of an issue.

You know, I think we’re quite lucky in our sector that casualisation isn’t so much a thing that we need to deal with, but precarious work for us is fixed-term contracts. And so we definitely will be aiming to tighten those up this round of bargaining.

Andrew: I think Sarah hit it on the head by saying that there’s sort of been an expectation that, potentially, this will be a bit of a box-ticking exercise, and, you know, here’s a bit of amendment to this clause, and a bit of a change over here, and here’s your nominal pay rise and on you go.

But for our– for us, it’s an opportunity, and an important opportunity to make significant changes, and if we don’t make them now, then, you know. Coming out of COVID… COVID has been a, you know, a trigger for so many changes, and it’s highlighted so many vulnerabilities and so many failings in the healthcare setting. If we don’t deal with some of those now, then we never will. And as Sarah said it just, you know, becomes a race to the

bottom.

So we say this is a really– a really fundamental opportunity to– to make significant changes in our Agreement, and it makes significant changes that will benefit Allied health Professionals going forward, and improve public health service services that are being delivered. So it’s, you know, it’s really important for us. Really, really important.

Rjurik: Andrew, you mentioned COVID there, and I was wondering, how do you think we should think about COVID in this context of public sector bargaining? I mean, people could make the argument that well, everybody in society’s sacrificing and so Allied Health Professionals will have to sacrifice as well.

I mean, how should we think about it? And how should we think about the public sector bargaining in that context?

Andrew: It’s a good question. I mean, you just said, you know, COVID changes everything, changes the– you know, it’s changed the way we… we live at the moment.

Last year, we actually, the Enterprise Agreement expired in 2020. But instead of going to bargaining  then, we opted to take, effectively, a rollover Enterprise Agreement for 12 months. Largely, you know, at the request of the government, but also in recognition of the duress that our members were under and not wanting to distract them when they were busy During the height of Wave 2 in Victoria, which was– was pretty horrendous.

So we took a rollover package, which actually ensured that our members got a 2.5% pay rise ahead of when they would have got one otherwise. So that was, you know, from our point of view, it was a– it was a good outcome.

But that brings us to this year, and it’s time to actually deal with the Agreement. So we’re hoping, you know, hopefully, fingers crossed that we can keep the COVID situation under control. That’s– that’s always a big unknown, but it doesn’t… it doesn’t change the need for healthcare workers to still, you know, get a decent wage for a decent day’s work.

And ultimately, that’s what we’re here for is, you know, as we said in our slogan, the respect, recognition and reward, and the reward’s an important part of that. And, you know, ideally, you know, we need to see advancement, and it’s– and we shouldn’t be going backwards just because there’s a, you know, a worldwide pandemic.

If anything, it’s actually heightened the awareness of the importance of these roles. And if we– and Sarah said, if we don’t make these– these jobs attractive, then we’re going to struggle to provide the services. And so we really need to– to use these as drivers to– to make the jobs attractive and to make them, you know, meaningful, uh, meaningful employment. And the respect as we keep saying, will flow with that.

So yeah, if anything, COVID, it’s a driver to improve the conditions rather than a reason to– to, you know, to ignore them.

Rjurik: So, Andrew, how’s it looking in terms of wage outcomes and, um, those sorts of things?

Andrew: Yeah, that’s the– always the $64 million question isn’t it? How much we’re going to get back in terms of pay rises.

And that’s become a really sticky, sticky point for us, because the State government has announced its updated Wage Policy, which is 1.5% per annum, which we think is totally outrageous. And– and we were saying before about how we took the rollover from last year this year, you know, that was to the benefit of everybody really, because it– it took that off the table for the time being.

But we don’t want to see our members being penalized because of that, and then being subjected to this new Wage Policy, which would mean that they would fall way behind all their other colleagues in health. So we see this, you know, 1.5% Wage Policy has been an arbitrary decision that just cannot apply to us.

And so we’ll have a significant quantum in our in our claim, but it’ll be well and above 1.5%, and we need to– we need to see much better returns for our members.

Sarah: Yeah, I mean, I just wanted to add to that, because that just– I think one and a half percent is such a slap in the face to our members, sort of, you know, like every other health discipline or health care worker have just spent the last 18 months working through COVID.

And I think it’s also worth noting that there is this, I guess, broader understanding out there that it’s, you know, nurses that have been doing the swabbing, nurses are doing the vaccinating and every other task, but what we should note too, that, you know, Allied Health Professionals have been out on the COVID-swabbing lines, too. They’ve been doing the temperature checking, they’ve been taking up the PPE spotter roles, they’ve been working in

the quarantine hotels.

So, you know, as much as the nurses, doctors and paramedics have been on the frontline of this COVID response, and to, you know, call them healthcare heroes on one hand, and then turn around and offer a 1.5 wages offer is just really outrageous.

So, you know, I think as Craig and Andrew said before, if you’re an Allied Health Professional in Victoria, and you’re not outraged, then you’re not paying attention.

Andrew: Oh, and flowing on from that, Sarah, you know, it goes back to the forgotten workforce again. I mean, nobody who comes into an ED, emergency department, with, you know, respiratory issues that have to be either confirmed or denied as COVID, they– they always end up having, you know, chest X-rays and CT to their chest. And if they end up with COVID, they’re going to end up seeing a respiratory physio.

So, you know, we know that Allied Health is integral to the whole health service, from the diagnostics when they’re coming in. And, you know, whether it be they’re seeing a physio in the ED or a radiographer in the ED. And once you’re in the ward, whether they’re being seen by, you know, the Allied Health therapies, and then, you know, in terms of discharge, you know, our people are key to that whole role.

And even beyond, um, the actual hospital process, you know, for the rehab or when they end up coming back to outpatient. Now, Allied Health drives all those services, and so, you know, we just get so frustrated and so outraged that the fact that they’re… that they just leave us out of the equation. So, you know, we– we definitely need to see our members get engaged and get involved with this– this whole campaign.

Sarah: Yeah, and I think on that note, we should say that it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when we proceed to industrial action. We’re not– we’re not ready to go yet, but, you know, it is something that members need to start thinking about in terms of what– what you’re prepared to do for this campaign and… and time you’re prepared to put in.

And it is something we discussed at the members meeting the other week that we’re not just talking about an industrial campaign in terms of industrial action in the workplace, it is going to need to be a broader community campaign, that it’s fo– that is focused on more resourcing for public sector Allied Health. So there’s certainly going to be a lot for members to do and get engaged in in the next period.

Andrew: And not just the members, they’re going to have to get their colleagues engaged as well and, you know, and get them to join up because ultimately, this whole campaign is resourced by the members. And so we need as many members as possible to make the campaign work and to get on board.

So, you know, if you’re a VAHPA member, you need to talk to your colleagues about the campaign, Share the updates that come out from the VAHPA team. But then, you know, put the ask on them in terms of you know, are you a member? Have you joined? Why not, you know, because otherwise you’re supporting them. So we definitely need to get the members to get their colleagues to join.

Rjurik: Hear, hear. And thanks, uh, to both of you for your time. This will be the first of a number of podcasts that we’ll do on the public sector bargaining and, of course, we’ll also be doing podcasts for VAHPA members in community health and private and… wherever you are, so keep an eye out for those.

Sarah: Great, thanks Rjurik.

Andrew: Thanks Rjurik, cheers.

[Lively guitar outro music plays.]