RNSH HealthShare Environmental Services members are reporting to the Union that the new Task Allocation System needs urgent adjustment. The Union has called for management’s urgent attention to providing flexibility in the allocation of tea and lunch break times to meet members’ needs. Our members are not robots and a measure of flexibility is always required – especially due to the nature of your work, relationships with nursing staff and your membership of ward and unit teams.

The Union and your workplace delegates meet regularly with management about the rollout of the System and we’re working hard to resolve any issues as soon as members raise them.

Members have reported that there is inflexibility in the allocation of break times where they have been allocated by the Help Desk, with no break between the tea break and lunch break. This is unsatisfactory and doesn’t make any sense. Members also say they are being asked to take breaks even when tasks have not been completed. This should not happen. All tasks should be completed without interruption and your break taken after you have logged off the job. For your own wellbeing, it is advisable that tea breaks be allocated 2 hours to 2.5 hours after starting work and according to your Award, you must be allocated a lunch break within 4 hours and no later than 5 hours after starting work.

Lastly, members report that nursing staff are still asking you to perform urgent cleans without logging this into the system. This should not happen. To manage the flow of work and to make sure all the work you are doing is recognised, nursing staff must now log all jobs, including urgent cleans, rather than asking you personally to do extra jobs for them.

If you have other issues you need fixed, please email your Organiser Denise O’Shaughnessy via email [E-Mail not displayed]. Along with your workplace delegates, she will continue to raise these issues with management to have any problems properly addressed and solutions implemented.

Tell your colleagues to join online at www.hsu.asn.au/join or call 1300 478 679. If we want to have a say about how things happen at work, a strong union is the first step.