The HSU has protected conditions of members at the Broken Hill Health Service after back and forth in the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC). Having an Award in place will help clarify and prevent disputes on employment conditions in future.

As members may be aware, on 28 June 2019 the Ministry of Health filed an application for a new award to be titled “Broken Hill Health Employees (State) Award 2019” (“Application”). This application was opposed by the HSU in the NSW Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) as it did not provide sufficient protection for our members.

In the IRC proceedings the HSU submitted that it believed there was merit in clarifying and regularising the conditions of employment for employees working within the Far West LHD, by making a new award to apply to those employees. However, the merit in clarifying and regularising the conditions of employment of the relevant employees did not justify stripping away the distinct conditions in Broken Hill which have developed over many decades.

On 13 January 2021, the IRC handed down a decision that determined such an award should be made. However, the IRC did not make the award, but rather sought to establish the basis on which it would be made. This included findings on particular terms and conditions in dispute between the parties, and a determination as to the sources from which other terms and conditions were to be derived. The full decision of 13 January 2021 can be found here.

For the next 10 months the HSU were in negotiations with the Ministry of Health to draft an Award in the terms determined by the IRC. As the parties could not reach an agreement, it was left to the IRC again to determine and make the Award.

The new Award was subsequently made on 22 February 2022 and can be viewed here.

If you have any questions about the new Award, please contact the HSU on 1300 478 679.