On Wednesday Victorian nurses will be meeting at Dallas Brooks Hall in Melbourne to discuss the upcoming Enterprise Bargaining Agreement negotiations between ANF (who represents nurses) and the government.
The last EBA, in 2007, involved the nastiest intimidation I've seen in 19 years of industrial disputes in nursing, with blatant bullying from management. It took place after the introduction of WorkChoices, a Liberal Federal government policy that significantly diminished the capacity for employees to take industrial action. The first serious industrial action after the legislation was passed, the whole of unionised Australia watched this test case, and I suspect there's never been more pressure on admin to force us to back down.
That would certainly explain the unprecedented bullying tactics and threats I not only heard about but witnessed. Like many nurses, I was docked pay in 4/24 blocks for dropping my patient load by one and closing a bed - my hospital wouldn't let us put those closed beds in one area but compelled any nurse who stood by bed closures to sacrifice pay. I worked eight night shifts, in charge with a patient load, over two weekends, and was docked the lot.
We held strong, in the face of threats and with the possibility of fines and jail time for ordinary union members, and had the backing of workers across the country. I still get a little choked up remembering that walk from the buses to Festival Hall, the street lined with members of other unions cheering us on. I was convinced that, for the first time since 1986, we were going to have to back down or take strike action - the government had been totally unwilling to budge on anything, wanting not only to give us no pay or condition improvements but also to remove the world's first nurse: patient ratios.
And then the state secretary stepped on the stage, a little later than expected, fresh from a 12th-hour meeting. The government had conceded almost every point, in exchage for renegotiation in four years, rather than the usual three year term that would mean negotiations during the state election. The thousands of nurses present were jubilant, and it was just amazing. WorkChoices was removed by the incoming Federal Labor government soon after.
That four years has gone remarkably quickly, and here we are again. Despite a convincing number of studies demonstrating a clear relationship between a better educated nursing workforce and better patient outcomes (including the essential bottom line results of shorter bed stays, fewer complications, fewer transfers to ICU and fewer readmissions), once again the spectre of unlicensed staff replacing nurses is raised. Despite the massive improvement on retention and recruitment of ratios, they're also threatened. And now there are whispers of a new innovation - split shifts with time off between nursing periods, to reduce floor staff in quieter periods - four hours on, two hours off and two hours on, for example. I'm not sure when these hypothetically quieter periods are, but according to bean counters somewhere, they exist.
This is the seventh time I've been involved in a campaign of industrial action. I'm so tired of gearing up for this ritual every three (or, in this case, four) years. Of knowing that, in the end, we'll get what we want but only if enough of us fight hard enough. Of trying to engage junior nurses, who weren't here last time, in participating despite the short-term cost of missing out on a few hours of pay. Of having to educate the public, again, about how important it is to have qualified staff caring for them and for their families. Of convincing my non-nursing colleagues that this affects them, and their patients, too. Of short-sighted governments focusing on the biggest part of the salary budget as an expense instead of the whole point of patient stays, and a necessary evil to keep bed stays as short as they are. Of admin, who started out on the floor but have become more concerned about pleasing their superiors than supporting their staff.
But then I think of the support from patients, families and the general public. I think about how unifying it is to work together toward a common goal, one that benefits not only us but those coming in to the profession after us, and the recipients of our care. And I think about my family, and myself, who will one day need skilled nursing staff caring for them - educated nurses whose expertise can make the difference between life and death, between comfort and distress, between being heard and being a task. And I feel ready to do this again.
On Wednesday Victorian nurses will be meeting at Dallas Brooks Hall in Melbourne to decide how best to respond to offers that disrespect the work we do, the care we provide, and the indispensible role we play in the health and welfare of Victoria's citizens. For those AN members in the state, I hope to see you there. And I hope the rest of you will support us.
