Dear Member,

Last week Garden Village met with your HSU bargaining representatives and outlined a plan to break your enterprise agreement and change the pay rise agreed to for this year. 

Management’s proposal – which would see some better off, and others worse off –ignores the pay rise agreed to as per Clause 7.2.3 of your enterprise agreement and is therefore unlawful. 

Your enterprise agreement clearly states the pay increase for 2024 and 2025 “will be at a minimum, 0.25 per cent higher than the relevant Modern Award increases set out by the Fair Work Commission Annual Wage Review”.

Given the Fair Work Commission’s Annual Wage Review set an increase of 3.75 per cent for awards in 2024, the pay increase for staff covered by the enterprise agreement must therefore be a minimum of 4 per cent in 2024.

However, Garden Village is proposing to breach the EA and give some staff a pay rise below 4 per cent, to fund higher pay rises for others. This is an outrageous proposal that ignores the minimum pay increase staff have agreed to! 

To be very clear, the HSU absolutely supports higher pay increases for members working in support services roles such as cleaning, food services and maintenance.

HSU delegates recently amended our Aged Care Sector Priorities, calling for better pay increases for support service workers, to recognise the growing disparity between those working in care roles and those in support services roles. 

However, higher pay for support services must not come at the expense of other workers who have voted on and agreed to pay rises in an enterprise agreement, which has been approved by the Fair Work Commission. 

If Garden Village wants to pay support staff a higher increase, we welcome that. However, Garden Village must not seek to fund this increase by ripping off other staff members from what they voted on and agreed to. 

Attached is a copy of management’s proposal.

HSU organiser Karen Wiles will be on site, Wednesday 31 July to discuss this issue with members. We need to stand together and support each other, to make sure our enterprise agreement is properly enforced!

Encourage your workmates to join the HSU. Together you have strength in your workplace. New members can join online at www.hsu.asn.au/join or call 1300 478 679.