1300 322 917
Dear Oral Health Practitioners,
We’re excited to share some important updates as we launch the “Nothing to Smile About” campaign, a critical step in addressing the undervaluation of Dental Hygienists, Dental Therapists and Oral Health Therapists (Oral Health Practitioners or OHPs) across Victoria. This campaign is about securing fair pay, respect, and recognition for the essential care you provide to the Victorian community.
Campaign Launch and Progress
As part of our efforts, VAHPA has been negotiating 4 enterprise agreements for OHPs across Victoria. This includes the successful negotiation of a strong enterprise agreement for OHPs at EACH, which marks an important milestone in achieving better wages and conditions for OHPs, even if we did not achieve the parity we sought.
Our claim is to achieve parity with Allied Health Professionals in the relevant sector (public sector or community health). Indeed, for public sector OHPs we’ve been pushing for an enterprise agreement that mirrors the conditions of the Allied Health Professionals Public Sector enterprise agreement and nominally expires on the same date—28 February 2026. The intention is for the OHP workforce to be brought into the subsequent broader Allied Health Professional Public Sector enterprise agreement.
VAHPA understands that the Health Minister and the Department of Health are supportive of our claims and of progressing our proposed approach. However, we are of the view that the current challenge is getting the Department of Treasury and Finance and the Premier to agree to our claims as they hold the purse strings.
Time for Industrial Action & Campaign Launch
Considering the lack of progress, the OHP workforce decided at a mass meeting on Monday night to significantly escalate our efforts by applying to the Fair Work Commission for a protected action ballot order (PABO) and to hold a public campaign launch promoting the Nothing to Smile About messaging.
If the PABO is successful, and together will make sure that it is, those OHPs who are VAHPA members will be in a position to start taking protected industrial action this year.
Industrial Action
Here’s a brief outline of the plan for protected industrial action:
- Social Media Campaign: We will flood platforms with our “Nothing to Smile About” campaign materials and messages.
- Flyer Distribution: Patients and their families, including children seeing Smile Squad, will receive “Smile Squad: Great Service, Terrible Pay” flyers to take home.
- Posters in Workplaces: “Nothing to Smile About” campaign posters will be displayed prominently.
- T-shirts: Members will wear their “Nothing to Smile About” t-shirts at work.
- Interrupting Billing Practices: We will challenge current billing workflows to draw attention to the issue.
Beyond workplace actions, the campaign will expand to broader public outreach such as:
- Articles in print media (already in trains).
- Stories on the radio
- Marginal seat campaigns targeting political leaders
Why This Matters
OHPs have been underpaid for far too long compared to their counterparts in other states and compared to other Allied Health professionals. However, this campaign is about more than just wage relativities. It’s about respect and about overturning decades of gender-based undervaluation of a workforce that is 91.3% female.
We must demonstrate our collective strength as a workforce.
To make this happen, we need every OHP to join VAHPA now.
Next Steps: Join VAHPA
VAHPA intends to finalise the application for a protected action ballot order by this Friday. As part of the ballot, we need to submit a list of eligible voters to the balloting agent. After the vote is complete, Employers and the Government will see the number of members (not names), so our industrial strength will be visible to them.
This is a critical moment. The stronger our numbers, the louder our voice. The future of fair pay and respect for OHPs depends on us standing together.
Only VAHPA members are able to take protected industrial action. So, if you want to fight for what is right, join now!
