Public Sector Bargaining is ON! Have you received your notice?

Members in the public sector should have received their Notice of Employee Representational Rights (NERR) by now.

This notice indicates that bargaining has commenced, provides you with basic information on what an enterprise agreement is, and announces that you have the right to appoint a bargaining representative if you wish to do so.

If you are a VAHPA member, you do not need to take any action in response to the notice — VAHPA, as your Union, is your default bargaining representative.

Members will be aware of the rally we held on 22 December 2015 at Treasury. This was a direct response to what we saw as unnecessary delays to the commencement of bargaining. Click here for Channel 7 coverage of the event.

We are pleased to report that a schedule for intensive bargaining — between the state government, the Victorian Hospitals Industrial Association (representing the employers) and VAHPA — has now been set, with talks commencing on 12 January.

A big thank you to all the members who came to the rally at Treasury and to all of those who wore their Code Blue t-shirt in solidarity that day. Your collective action made a big difference and we can finally start bargaining for your new Agreement. For photos of the rally and to keep up to date with the campaign as it unfolds, don’t forget to follow our Facebook page.

Please note, there are 86 separate employers in the public sector, so there might be slight discrepancies in the exact release date of the NERR. However if you haven’t received your NERR by COB Monday 11 January 2015 please contact us and human resources at your workplace to register your concern.