St Vincents Hospital

‘Devastated’ Lismore nurses rally over pay offer backflip

January 11, 2024 by Madeline Lucre Leave a Comment

Nurses from the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) St Vincent’s Private Hospital branch have taken their fight to the streets, making their voices heard at a community rally in Lismore.

Around fifty nurses chanted and rallied in their own time at the Lismore Transit Centre, with community members turning out to show their support. Nurses came together to vent their frustration and disappointment over management’s decision to withdraw a pay offer at the 11th hour.

NSWNMA St Vincent’s Private Hospital Lismore branch members chanted: “Covid, floods we’ve had our share. Pay us what we know is fair.” And “Nurses show up day and night, pay us what we know is right.”

Nurses had been offered a 4 per cent increase for 2023 and 2.53% backdated to October 2022. However, that has since been rescinded, with management now putting forward a substantially lower 2.3% offer, backdated to the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2023.

Branch Secretary and Clinical Nurse Specialist, Janelle Hospers, said nurses at the hospital were dismayed over the decision by new CEO, Alan Cooper, to take management’s initial offer off the table.

“The previous CEO and the board had approved it, so it seems a bit ridiculous to withdraw what was promised,” Ms Hospers said.

“I think what has occurred was not professional at all. It has devastated a lot of nurses and staff.”

NSWNMA General Secretary, Shaye Candish, said the past three years had been gruelling for nurses and midwives in the Northern Rivers.

“What our members at St Vincent’s Private Hospital are asking for is not unreasonable. In fact, our hardworking nurses are very deserving of this wage increase, particularly when you consider the COVID pandemic and floods we’ve seen.” said Ms Candish.

“They show up every day and night to provide patients in Lismore and surrounds with high quality clinical care, but their pay is not reflective of this.”

The NSWNMA has written to the hospital’s board, requesting that it comes back to the bargaining table within seven days to reinstate the original offer.

Strikes win private hospital ratios

September 19, 2023 by Madeline Lucre Leave a Comment

Nurses at two big private hospitals have won staffing ratios  after sustained industrial action for a new enterprise agreement.

NSWNMA delegates at St Vincent’s Private Hospital in Darlinghurst, Sydney, and the Mater Hospital in North Sydney have described their winning campaign for staffing ratios as a  great achievement.

Their employer, St Vincent’s Health Australia (SVHA), had earlier rejected ratios as “out of the question”.

However, nurses at Sydney’s biggest private hospital, Sydney Adventist, had already set something of a precedent by winning ratios in 2022.

Encouraged by this example, NSWNMA members employed by SVHA held their first strike at the end of 2022 and maintained a strong campaign that united nurses in industrial action across both the Mater and St Vincent’s Private.

Nurses voted for industrial action in secret ballots and held five rounds of strikes at each hospital.

SVHA responded with an offer of three annual increases of 3.75 per cent, 3.25 per cent and 3.25 per cent, and inadequate ratios for a limited number of wards/units at night.

NSWNMA branches voted to reject the revised offer, but management insisted on putting it to a vote of all nursing staff.

The offer was overwhelmingly rejected by 76 per cent of nurses  and midwives.

A huge achievement

The NSWNMA then held a second ballot, which won strong endorsement for further industrial action.

This showed the SVHA executive that nurses were serious about getting a better deal.

SVHA then agreed to ratios throughout both hospitals, to improve staffing in all perioperative areas and an improved pay offer.

NSWNMA Branch secretary at  the Mater Hospital, Deidre Duggan, described the win as “a huge achievement”.

“Initially, the executive was adamant they would never consider giving us ratios, so the outcome is a huge turnaround and it’s really exciting for us,” she said.

“It will make a huge difference for our workplace, our patients and ourselves as individual nurses  and midwives.

“It’ll be a much safer workplace and we will be in a much better position to support and educate the new grads coming through, because our workloads won’t be as heavy.

“Previous offers from management weren’t up to scratch – we just couldn’t accept them. But overall, we have done very well out of  this campaign.

“Our ratios will be better than what the Sydney Adventist Hospital and the public system have.”

Deidre, a theatre nurse, said implementation of ACORN standards would increase theatre staffing to 3.5 nurses, with an additional nurse working across two theatres.

Strong union presence

“It will be easier to take meal breaks and theatres will run much more smoothly. Plus, we will have more time to teach new grads,” she said.

“It’s a big step forward; our theatre staffing will be better than any other hospital in NSW.”

She said the Mater’s NSWNMA branch was now much stronger as a result of the campaign of indust- rial action, with about 90 per cent union coverage.

“Our campaign delivered new members, which in turn strengthened our campaign.

“The more members we had, the more people we could take  out on strike, which gave us a  greater impact.”

The NSWNMA had already raised its profile among SVHA nurses before the campaign for a new enterprise agreement got underway late  last year.

The union acted to successfully recover incorrect payments and additional days off (ADOs) that had been abolished.

“Getting ADOs back for us was a  big membership boost and during the campaign, nurses could see we were determined to make the hospital a better place to work,” Deidre said.

Private nurses and midwives reject ‘paltry’ pay offer

June 16, 2023 by Rayan Calimlim Leave a Comment

Hundreds of nurses and midwives at two major Sydney private hospitals have voted down a new enterprise agreement with employer St Vincent’s Health Australia (SVHA), after labelling it ‘disrespectful’ and ‘beyond disappointing’.

For more than six months, NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) members at St Vincent’s Private Hospital in Darlinghurst and North Sydney’s Mater Private Hospital pleaded with SVHA to improve staffing ratios and conditions in the proposed agreement, as well as its 3.75 per cent pay offer.

NSWNMA General Secretary, Shaye Candish, said the resounding ‘no’ ballot result was justified and called on SVHA to return to the negotiating table with tangible offers which recognise the professionalism and value of their nursing and midwifery workforce.

“The nurses and midwives of St Vincent’s Private and Mater hospitals deserve better. They should be afforded the right to feel safe and supported in their workplaces, and to feel valued by their employer,” said Ms Candish.

“The proposed three-year agreement did not address our members’ concerns on constant understaffing, the need for nurse-to-patient ratios or improvements to midwifery staffing. The pay offer SVHA put on the table also failed to acknowledge the financial pressures staff are impacted by.

“In light of the recent Fair Work Commission announcement of a 5.75 per cent pay increase for those on award wages, SVHA really does need to do better.”

NSWNMA Assistant General Secretary, Michael Whaites, said after the NSW government committed to introduce Safe Staffing Levels into public hospital, SVHA should have revised its proposed agreement to include safe ratios.

“Understandably, many of these private sector nurses and midwives are concerned they will continue to lose experienced staff out of the private hospitals, as they seek out better working conditions in the public health system,” said Mr Whaites.

“We will continue to put forward the evidence-based case for nurse-to-patient ratios across a number of specialty areas during future negotiations with SVHA.”

NSWNMA members will now consider next steps and have not ruled out expanded types of industrial action at either hospital.

Private hospitals rally for ratios and fair pay

June 2, 2023 by Madeline Lucre Leave a Comment

International Nurses Day on 12 May was a day of protest for nurses and midwives employed by St Vincent’s Health Australia (SVHA) at two Sydney private hospitals.

Nurses and midwives from the Mater Hospital in North Sydney and St Vincent’s Private in Darlinghurst went on strike and held their first ever joint rally in Sydney on 12 May.

The International Nurses Day action was the latest step in their eight-month campaign for staffing ratios and pay rises that match inflation.

A bus load of Mater nurses and midwives travelled to Darlinghurst, where they were met by St Vincent’s Private nurses outside the hospital.

“As we got off the bus, the St Vincent’s nurses cheered and applauded us,” said Mary-Anne Renshaw, the Mater’s NSWNMA delegate.

‘Unless they give us ratios, they are not enabling us to achieve teamwork, best practice and safe practice.’

— Mary-Anne Renshaw, NSWNMA Mater Hospital delegate

“We walked across the street together to the rally in Green Park. Cars were honking their horns, even the ambulances were giving us toots with their sirens. There was so much camaraderie – it was fantastic.”

Nurses and midwives carried placards that said “Safe staffing saves lives”, “Safety over profit” and “If we are outside, something is wrong inside”.

It was the third strike by Mater and St Vincent’s Private nurses and midwives during the current campaign. In addition, departments at each hospital have held shorter lunchtime rallies.

The work stoppages follow near-unanimous votes in secret ballots for industrial action.

Mary-Anne said SVHA management had unreasonably rejected union claims on ratios and pay “without looking at the larger, broader and far-reaching effects of their decision.”

“They haven’t budged on anything we’ve asked for – they put the kibosh on every claim the moment we ask for it,” she said.

“That has only made us more determined to continue the campaign. It’s actually strengthened the solidarity between nurses at both hospitals.

“We are totally unified in our desire to achieve patient-focused teamwork using best and safest practice. Unless they give us ratios, they are not enabling us to achieve teamwork, best practice and safe practice.”

She said if management continued to reject ratios, nurses and midwives would leave to take jobs in the public sector where the state government has committed to introducing ratios.

Sydney’s biggest private hospital, Sydney Adventist, agreed to ratios last year.

Speaking at the International Nurses Day rally, secretary of the NSWNMA branch at St Vincent’s Private, Kate Westwood, congratulated

all members who joined the industrial action.

“It takes courage to seek change,” she said.

“Over the last eight months of our campaign we have learned a lot.

“We have strengthened our communication networks, united together in solidarity, met with political allies and now have a state government that is committed to rolling out ratios in our public hospitals.”

Kate said that during negotiations, member representatives had “delivered very compelling statements about workload burdens, moral duress, patient care and safety” to management.

Despite this, SVHA had offered nothing to address the “crushing workloads and unsafe staffing”.

“Despite our cries for help, the SVHA leadership team is choosing to ignore its nursing workforce and resist reform.”

Kate said the state Labor government’s commitment to mandatory ratios “has left me and my private hospital colleagues concerned we will be left behind”.

“We cannot afford to let our brilliant nurses leave us for the public system.”

St Vincent’s and Mater Branches rescue ADOs

March 9, 2023 by Madeline Lucre Leave a Comment

How nurses and midwives at St Vincent’s Health Australia won back their entitlement to ADOs.

Rights under the Enterprise Agreement

Under the enterprise agreements (EA) covering St Vincent’s Private Hospital Darlinghurst, Mater North Sydney and St Vincent’s Griffith, full time nurses have long been entitled to work a monthly roster of 19 x 8-hour days plus one accrued day off (ADO).

The EA also says that by mutual agreement, nurses may opt to work 20 x 7.6-hour days in a 28-day calendar roster with no ADO.

However, from 2018, nurses were told the 20 days of 7.6-hour shifts was the only contract on offer.

Similarly, staff who were changing positions and required new contracts (permanent or temporary) were told 7.6-hour shifts were the only option available.

In this way, the right to an ADO was denied to all RNs who signed employment contracts from 2018 through to 2022.

What the branches did

Sinead Keane, assistant secretary of the NSWNMA branch at St Vincent’s Private, said the changed approach to ADOs in 2018 came with a new executive leadership team when “the focus on reducing staffing costs seemed to intensify”.

Members raised the issue during branch discussions over a new EA last year.

“The union was gaining more momentum and a higher profile within the hospital,” Sinead said. “People felt more empowered to bring up the ADO issue at meetings or by approaching a branch official.”

To determine the extent of the problem, NSWNMA member leaders at the hospital asked recent starters whether they had been offered a contract with ADOs. None had.

“The branch advised members who wished to keep their ADOs to contact the union office, and to push back and not sign any contract that did not include an ADO,” Sinead said.

Branch officials identified members who had been put on 7.6-hour contracts, told them they were entitled to a monthly ADO, showed them the relevant EBA clause and asked them if they wanted an ADO. All said yes.

The branch got them all to sign a form requesting an ADO roster starting on a common date and lodged the forms with management.

Meanwhile, NSWNMA head office prepared to lodge a dispute with the Fair Work Commission.

The win

Management finally agreed to reinstate ADOs for all RNs who met the criteria and applied for ADOs.

Management must now, as a default, offer all new full time starters with a roster with an ADO every 28 days. Failure to do this is a breach of the enterprise agreement provisions.

“We’ve definitely had a win due to constant pressure from the branch pointing out that management was not following the agreement,” Sinead says.

In total, more than 100 nurses across the three sites have got back their ADOs.

‘People felt more empowered to bring up the ADO issue at meetings or by approaching a branch official.’

— Sinead Keane

UNION WIN: ADOs to be reinstated at St Vincent’s Health

October 11, 2022 by Rayan Calimlim Leave a Comment

Following a month-long dispute, St Vincent’s Health Australia (SVHA) has agreed to reinstate Additional Days Off (ADOs) to nurses and midwives working full time at SVHA facilities.

After discovering ADOs were not being provided to over 100 nurses and midwives, the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association launched a campaign to have the entitlement reinstated. Members working at SVHA facilities – St Vincent’s Private Hospital in Darlinghurst, Mater Hospital in North Sydney, and St Vincent’s Community Health in Griffith – collected over 70 forms from affected employees, requesting that they receive the entitlement..

The entitlement had been in the SVHA enterprise agreement and previous industrial instruments since 1986, however had not been given to members over recent years.

SVHA management had originally argued that reinstating these rights would be too difficult and had attempted to delay the process. However, after a concerted union campaign, the parties agreed to the reinstatement of ADOs, commencing from October 2022.

NSWNMA General Secretary, Shaye Candish, lauded the development as a win for active union members.

“Active union members are critical to winning and keeping your rights at work,” she said.

“By speaking up, these members have won their rights to the ADOs they were entitled to.”

Members at the Mater and Griffith have had ADOs rostered from the 10th of October, with members at Darlinghurst to be rostered from the 17th of October. For further information on the process, please contact the Association here.