WattleRangeNow

Local News at Your Fingertips

Millicent Hospital and Sheoak Lodge staff members walk off the job

by

by S Lowe 5THE FM’s newsonline wattlerangenow

Today is the second day of escalated industrial action by United Voice members across the South Australian public sector. United Voice members at Millicent Hospital and Sheoak Lodge will be attending a stop work meeting from 12:30 to 2:30.

Industrial action is commencing in regional areas, following the initial Stop Work meeting held yesterday at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. A stop work meeting of more than 50 workers at Millicent Hospital and Sheoak Lodge is planned today.Enterprise bargaining negotiations between United Voice members and the SA Government have been going since mid last year. Early this year, members decided to take industrial action in the form of work bans because they felt negotiations had stalled.Since late February, work bans have been in place across the public sector, undertaken by hospital workers, orderlies, patient services attendants, kitchen workers, hospital cleaners, disability carers, aged carers, and schools and national parks grounds and maintenance staff.United Voice members have ensured that work bans do not compromise patient safety.Last week union representatives called for a meeting with the SA Government to attempt to reach a resolution. At the meeting on Tuesday, 14 April, SA Government representatives refused to budge on members’ key issues of:

  • A step by step process for dealing with changes to workforce composition, including cuts to services;
  • A commitment to no new privatisation, contracting out and outsourcing in the new Agreement; and
  • A fair wage increase.

United Voice members are very concerned that the SA Government has not committed to a step by step process for dealing with changes to workforce composition, including cuts to services.

United Voice Branch Secretary David Di Troia said, “The Government has so far made no commitments against cutting or outsourcing services in the public sector. I see no reason for the Government to reject a process for dealing with changes in job numbers, or to refuse to commit to no outsourcing or privatisation.

Their ongoing rejection of fair job security for public sector workers raises real concerns as to whether they plan to make significant cuts to public services in the near future.”

United Voice members at Millicent Hospital and Sheoak Lodge will be attending a stop work meeting from 12:30 to 2:30.

Source:- Press release from United Voice. http://www.unitedvoice.org.au/press-releases/members-walk-the-job-millicent

 

 Statement from SA Health provided to 5THE FM SAID:-

United Voice commenced industrial action across the state on 19 February 2015 as a result of Enterprise Bargaining negotiations. Patient care has not been compromised as a result of this action.

Comments are closed.