ANF
members attended today's meeting to receive a report back from Paul Gilbert, ANF
(Vic Branch) Acting Secretary regarding the RDNS in-principle agreement reached
on Friday 13 July through FWA conciliation. The Agreement ensures RDNS nurses maintain
safe patient workloads while achieving improved wages and conditions.
ANF
(Vic Branch) representatives have been negotiating with RDNS management since August
2011; protected industrial action commenced on 18 June 2012 and escalated on 3 July
in response to RDNS management walking away from negotiations. On Thursday 5
July RDNS nurses voted to suspend the escalated protected action to focus on
FWA conciliation which commenced on Friday 6 July with the assistance of Deputy
President Hamilton.
Australian
Nursing Federation (Victorian Branch) Acting Secretary Paul Gilbert said: "RDNS
nurses are relieved to have all matters in the Agreement resolved. They voted unanimously
to endorse the Agreement and will cease all protected action this afternoon.
"After
an extremely long and frustrating period of negotiation, the resulting Agreement
ensures RDNS nurses have safe patient workloads and improved wages and
conditions," he said.
"In
addition to 2.5% wage increases paid annually over the next four years, RDNS
nurses, for the first time have also secured a new annual pro-rata allowance of
$700 paid for the life of the agreement to assist with their re-registration
professional development obligations with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of
Australia," Mr Gilbert said.
RDNS
nurses will also receive an extra one off $200 payment in the first year of the
Agreement and CCAs will for the first time receive a new annual pro-rata allowance
of $300 paid for the life of the Agreement.
"ANF
and RDNS nurses thank the patients and their families who have supported the
campaign. It has meant a lot to RDNS nurses to know the community understands what
they were fighting for," Mr Gilbert said.
Each
year RDNS nurses visit 35,000 patients with a chronic or terminal illness or who
have recently been discharged from hospital, in their homes across Melbourne
and parts of regional Victoria.
