We’ve met with Wendy and some of her management team to talk about several issues that workers are continuously having. Here are their responses to some of our questions:

Mandatory training

Meercroft said that when mandatory training is required, they’ll try to ensure that the majority of workers will be able to complete the modules in work time (15 minutes at either the start or the end of your shift, ensuring that someone is there to replace you for that period). Those who cannot be scheduled to complete it in work hours will be paid once they reach an hour on the modules at home.

As RNs are already doing certain mandatory modules to keep up their PD points, they may not need to repeat those modules, depending on what they’ve already completed.

28-day notice period for rosters

We raised the issue that Meercroft is not always meeting the 28-day notice period for rosters. Wendy said they’re about to change systems as the current one is hard for workers to navigate when they need to find the 28 days’ worth of rosters and when they want to advise their availability for shifts.

Wendy believes the new system may alleviate some of the rostering issues. She also hopes that workers let Meercroft know of their availability ASAP – otherwise it’ll be filled accordingly to keep within the 28-day notice period.

Retention bonus

Meercroft confirmed that they had applied for the retention bonus that is currently on offer. So it’s now just a waiting game for the payments from the government.

If you have more issues with mandatory training or your roster notice period, please don’t hesitate to call HACSUassist on 1300 880 032 for further advice.