Dispute over aged care wage rise payout

Lifeview has disputed claims made by the ANMF that it won't pass on a 15 per cent wage rise for its staff.

Last week, the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation (ANMF) said it had received reports from aged care workers claiming their employers tried to lock them into new enterprise agreements.

This came after the Fair Work Commission (FWC) ruled a 15 per cent pay rise for aged care staff, which will come into effect in June 2023.

If signed, the new enterprise agreement would allegedly raise wages, but not to the full amount of additional funding to cover the mandated pay rise.

Earlier this year, the ANMF filed multiple bargaining dispute applications to Fair Work, which involved four aged care facilities owned by non-profit Lifeview and 14 owned by non-profit mecwacare.

At 9.30am on Wednesday, ANMF Victorian branch secretary Paul Gilbert met with eight aged care employers for a conciliation hearing at Melbourne's FWC building.

The aged care providers involved were Lifeview (four facilities), mecwacare (15 facilities), Villa Maria Catholic Homes (13 facilities), VMCH Corpus Christie Aged Care Residence, Deloraine Greensborough Aged Care Facility, RALAC (Ringwood Area Lions Aged Care), Westmont Aged Care Services and Cobram Regional Care (formerly Ottrey Homes).

Lifeview chief Samantha Jewell told Aged Care Insite that the ANMF's accusations were 'incorrect.'

"We never said that we were not going to pay our staff what they're entitled to," Jewell said.

The ANMF, however, claims it has received reports from aged care workers that many providers would only sign off on a wage rise unless they're 'legally required' to do so.

But Jewell said that most Lifeview staff were 'excited to sign the new contract' as it would raise their pay by 3 per cent.

The Melbourne-based health service currently employs over 300 staff and delivers services to 282 residents across four aged care facilities.

Enterprise agreements are documents that outline the terms and conditions negotiated by the employer and employee.

Lifeview said it had been in negotiations with the ANMF before Christmas for a new EA but which was 'cancelled at the union's request.'

In 2023, Jewell said the ANMF returned and sought to add a clause to the EA that would give them the right to review Lifeview's expenditure.

"They're stepping out of their role," Jewell said.

"It's very unusual for a union to go through a company's spending.

"That's the role of the government, which we report to every three months."

The federal government has said Labor said it was committed to funding providers for the wage rise but wanted to phase it out over 12 months starting July 1st.

In February 2023, the FWC called on the government to pay for the raise in full by June 30th this year to include chefs, recreational and lifestyle workers.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers expressed concerns on how it would pay for the wage increase and is yet to specify whether it'll cover on-costs.

Jewell said the ANMF is 'drawing something up without knowing all the facts.'

"I can understand that the ANMF wants to ensure that aged care staff receive a pay rise," she said.

"Nobody is arguing that aged care staff need a significant pay rise.

"But at the moment, it's not clear what the government plans to do, and we wanted to give our staff a pay rise now."

Jewell said Lifeview would return to the drawing board once the government announced how it planned to fund the wage increase.

The FWC's ruling of a 15 per cent increase would raise the hourly wage of a personal care worker grade one to $27.11 and an enrolled nurse to $30.51.

According to the ANMF, the government plans to fund providers for the pay rise across all wages.

"This means that it should go to everyone regardless of whether they're employed on an award or not," ANMF federal assistant secretary Lori-Anne Sharp told Aged Care Insite.

"But some providers are trying to lock in agreements now, so they're not bound to pay the 15 per cent increase.

"We want a clause in these EAs that says they'll get the 15 per cent pay rise from the government and ensure providers won't take the federal funding as profit."

The ANMF has called on the government to take 'a strong position' and ensure transparency and accountability around the pay rise funding.

ANMF federal secretary Annie Butler said the government must enforce rules on providers to ensure pay rates would be raised sufficiently to address the workforce shortage.

It's estimated that 65,000 aged care workers leave the sector annually, with a forecasted staffing shortage of over 200,000 full-time staff by 2050.

"There need to be rules or triggers imposed by the government that require aged care providers to pass the additional funding on to higher wages," Butler said.

"We need to ensure the money gets into the pockets of aged care workers, not the wallets of wealthy providers.

Butler said she hoped that the government will soon consult with the ANMF.

"If it's through the usual mechanisms, it's apparent that some providers won't pass on the full pay rise to their staff," she said.

"It just shows the lengths that some aged care operators will take to avoid paying their workers what they are rightfully entitled to and, frankly, deserve."

Aged Care Insite has reached out to mecwacare for comment.

Get the news delivered straight to your inbox

Receive the top stories in our weekly newsletter Sign up now