Media Release

27 June 2006

Nurses to join National Day Of Protest

The Australian Nursing Federation will join a National Day of Protest on Wednesday 28 June against the Howard Government’s industrial relations changes. The new laws threaten to undermine nurses’ working conditions and as a consequence the quality of nursing care in Australia.

ANF Federal Secretary Jill Iliffe said some employers are already using the new laws to erode working conditions, reduce nursing hours and replace nurses with less qualified staff.

‘Nurses around Australia are already feeling the impact of the new laws. An employer in the Victorian aged care sector is currently trying to make 47 nurses redundant and reduce the hours of a number of other staff at five aged care facilities. 

‘A major private hospital in regional Queensland withdrew from a state industrial arbitration case over pay and conditions in early April claiming it was covered by the new IR laws. Using this legislation to sack nurses, reduce nursing hours and erode conditions is a direct threat to the quality of patient care and our entire health system.’

Ms Iliffe said similar legislation introduced in New Zealand in 1991 had a devastating impact on nurses and the health care system.

‘In 1991 the New Zealand Government used the same rhetoric as Mr Howard about freedom of choice and increased living standards. The reality was the New Zealand Employment Contract Act shifted the balance significantly in favour of employers.

‘Nurses in New Zealand faced threats to remove them from regular shifts if they refused to sign individual contracts. A number of nurses were made redundant because they refused to sign contracts eliminating penalty and overtime rates, cutting annual leave entitlements and abolishing shift allowances.’

Competitive employment practices are not appropriate for health professionals whose primary concern is the care of sick and vulnerable people, Ms Iliffe said.

‘Nurses work best collectively and take a team based approach to caring for patients. The idea that they should be competing against each other under individual contracts is abhorrent to them.’

Media inquiries
Jill Iliffe, Federal Secretary  0419 576 590
Ged Kearney, Assistant Federal Secretary 0417 053 322
Lani Stanistreet, Manager Communication and Journals 0414 471 339