Released Thursday 5 September 2024
The Second Offer made by the Department of Health on 20 August 2024 has now been unanimously rejected by the HSUWA Committee of Management.
The departments will meet this week to finalise arrangements for further action to be taken in the coming weeks.
While the Second Offer offered some improvements from the initial offer, the State Government continues to refuse to properly engage with the 20 essential claims submitted by HSUWA members to improve conditions and create a sustainable workforce.
The wages offer of 12% over 3 years does not restore the wages lost under the years of the State Government’s budget repair, nor reflect the invaluable work of HSUWA members both now and through COVID-19.
Under this offer, the public health workforce would continue to be worse off after seven years of this Government and seven significant consecutive budget surpluses due to CPI, cost-of-living pressures and inflation.
The State Government has failed to respond to 8 of the claims for simple, sensible and well overdue workforce reforms made by HSUWA members that are critical to the sustainability of the public health workforce.
Overdue workforce reform measures providing clear career pathways for Allied Health Professionals and Anaesthetic Technicians, additional support for professional development, and shift work night penalties are just some of the essential claims Health have refused to engage with – all of which are critical to stopping the continuing exodus of essential public health workers to the private sector.
None of the 20 claims have been agreed to in full, and the majority of the 12 claims the State Government has partially agreed to are no or low cost.
The message from HSUWA members is clear – the State Government needs to stop its current approach of expensive, short sighted and short-term thinking and instead engage with the public health workforce in a fair and respectful way.
HSUWA members are the glue that holds the state’s health system together. Representing the Allied Health, technical, and administrative health workforce, they make up the largest workforce in WA’s public health system.
The State Government must prove they are serious about supporting quality public health care by submitting a serious and fair Third Offer to HSUWA members.
The Government must invest now in the public health workforce and provide a fair Third Offer.
An investment now will deliver dividends for WA Health’s future and sustainability.
An investment now provides the recognition and respect that the public health workforce deserves.
Comments attributed to Naomi McCrae, HSUWA Secretary:
“Our members are not interested in band aid solutions – they are fighting for a pay increase that will keep ahead of inflation and the priority workforce reforms needed to support and retain skilled public health workers.
“While the Department of Health continues its focus on negotiating tactics and strategically prolonging the offer process, HSUWA members are continuing to fight, in good faith, for fair pay and priority workforce reforms to ultimately deliver a sustainable public health system for Western Australians.
“By choosing to limit career pathway reform for Allied Health Professionals and Anaesthetic Technicians from the Second Offer, the State Government is either completely unaware of the critical workforce retention issues impacting patient care or they just don’t care.
“We will continue to fight until the State Government is ready to engage with our claim in a meaningful and respectful way.
“It is time the State Government makes public health workers a priority.”
