Mental health workers at the Roy Fagan Centre will walk off the job for one hour today (Tuesday 10 June) after more than a year of stalled negotiations with the government through their negotiations team from the State Service Management Office (SSMO) regarding a new agreement.
The Roy Fagan Centre is a vital facility for older Tasmanians with conditions like dementia and Huntington's and who require 24-hour assistance.
At the centre of the dispute is the conditions for ward aides, who provide vital operational support similar to carers in nursing homes. Ward aides at the Roy Fagan Centre work demanding 12 or 12.5-hour shifts but, unlike nursing staff, do not receive paid meal breaks and are subject to significantly lower shift penalties. The last agreement covering these arrangements expired in 2020.
"Our ward aides are essential to the 24/7 care provided at Roy Fagan Centre, yet they are not compensated fairly for their long, often challenging shifts," HACSU State Secretary Robbie Moore said.
"After extensive bargaining and prior industrial action, we finally reached an in-principle agreement with the SSMO over two months ago. It is completely unacceptable that the SSMO has failed to provide a formal offer to enact these agreed-upon improvements.
HACSU has been actively negotiating with the SSMO for a replacement agreement for over 12 months. The failure of the SSMO to formalise the agreed-upon terms has left workers with no option but to take further industrial action,” he added.
The one-hour stop work aims to pressure the SSMO to immediately present a formal offer that reflects the in-principle agreement, ensuring fair and equitable conditions for all mental health workers at the Roy Fagan Centre.