NURSES and carers in Kingston are taking industrial action over pay and conditions at BUPA aged care homes.
A stop work meeting and community barbecue to highlight workers’ wage demands and concerns about staffing rosters was held at BUPA’s aged care centre in Edithvale last week as part of “stage two” industrial action.
The stage two protected industrial action means staff will not work on paperwork or work to rosters unless overtime is approved in writing beforehand.
Staff at Bupa’s Bonbeach aged care home are taking part in “stage one” action at this stage with carers wearing red age care campaign T-shirts and handing out information about the pay and conditions campaign to residents and families.
More than 1000 nurses and carers at 26 Bupa aged care centres over the past two weeks across Victoria are taking part in the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation union mandated industrial action.
The union says Bupa offered staff a 2.1 per cent wage rise in December last year and an 11.25 per cent increase over three years since industrial action began.
The ANMF has recommended its members not accept the offer since rostering demands have not been met.
The union says one carer on night shift can be tasked with looking after between 20 to 25 residents and nurses and carers on “unplanned leave” are not replaced by management.
“Inadequate staffing levels in aged care have become so normalised in a profit-driven aged care sector that employers appear blind to the consequences,” ANMF Victorian branch assistant secretary Paul Gilbert said in a media statement. “Bupa nurses and carers should be so proud that their unprecedented industrial action has put a spotlight on aged care staffing numbers and is prompting people to ask what is a safe number of nurses and carers to look after our elderly loved ones?”
Mr Gilbert called on the federal government to enforce minimum nursing levels under the Aged Care Act.
Bupa said “the care and wellbeing of residents who choose to live in Bupa aged care homes is our absolute priority.”
Bupa Aged Care Australia chief nurse Maureen Berry said a proposal to create a new role of clinical case manager by “consolidating existing clinical manager and care manager roles” had sparked the union action.
“It is important to clarify that any suggestion this proposal is the result of industrial action is false,” Ms Berry said in a statement. “This proposal and the ongoing wage negotiations are separate matters.
“On the separate matter of our wage negotiations with our Victorian workforce, we continue to negotiate in good faith with the Unions. Our latest offer includes an 11.25 per cent wage increase over three years and protection of penalty rates including weekend loadings.”
The union has asked the independent Fair Work Commission to step in and help with negotiations.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 18 October 2017
