Yesterday, HealthShare dragged HSU delegates back to the Industrial Relations Commission, trying to convince the Commissioner to issue orders HSU members for standing firm on the Red/Green ban.  

Back in 2021, HSU members voted for simple bans designed to keep members and patients safe amid confusing and ever-changing HealthShare policies during the Delta outbreak. The first of these bans, initially called ‘No crossing back over the COVID line’ came to be known as Red/Green bans and was a very effective layer of protection for vulnerable patients. While the rest of the society has moved to a ‘Post-COVID World’, HSU members in PTS know that is not a reality for the vulnerable patients, many of which are aged care residents, that they transport every day. For this reason, the Red/Green ban has never been lifted by members.

Nothing could make it clearer that HealthShare upper management live in a bubble than their argument in the IRC yesterday. While their representative claimed that the ban was causing major disruptions to service delivery and excessive wait times, it quickly became clear that they had zero data to draw a link between inefficient service delivery and members’ industrial action.

While the Commissioner agreed with the evidence submitted by HealthShare that this ban was not medically necessary, he did not issue HSU members with orders to lift the bans. Instead, he provided a recommendation to lift the bans.

HSU members in PTS on or off duty should attend a stop work zoom meeting for 30 minutes on Monday 21 August at 1:30pm to discuss the member response to this recommendation. Zoom link and further information about this meeting will be sent via text on the day.