WHEN IS A
CONFERENCE LOOKS AT
HOSPITAL
INDUSTRIAL WINS AND FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES
Attendees heard from newly appointed Fair Work Commissioner and long-time industrial lawyer Emma Thornton about new legislation targetting sexual harassment in the workplace; Super SA gave a presentation on how women can make the most of their superannuation; and we hosted a panel discussion on trends in the workplace
Central to the ongoing safety and security dispute are proposed procedures for unlocking the new units at the prison in the morning; risks associated with new socalled “contemporary” secure walkways; and the Department for Correctional Services view that prisoners can be moved to G Division – the prison’s highest security wing – on foot rather than in a mobile secure unit.
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The PSA has been supporting members at the Adelaide Dental Hospital (ADH) in their effort to secure the same free public transport benefits as workers in other metropolitan public hospitals.
PSA General Secretary Natasha Brown said the conference enabled the women of our union to connect, converse and encourage each other to improve the lives of working women. “It was about reminding ourselves of how far we have come – about our hard-won achievements – and also how we can achieve further progress in making workplaces better and fairer for women,” she said. The day also saw the re-launch of the PSA Women’s Network.
YATALA NEW BUILD LOCKED IN STALEMATE Safety and security concerns remain at the heart of a dispute at Yatala Labour Prison while building and design issues mean the brand new $180m complex is still unable to house prisoners six months after its official opening.
HOSPITAL?
affecting women, and what the future might look like.
The South Australian Employment Tribunal (SAET) has so far supported the department’s new policy for unlocking the new units in the mornings, and is supporting the use of the “contemporary” walkways. SAET has also encouraged the parties to have further discussions around the movement of prisoners in consultation with SafeWork SA. Prison Work Heath and Safety Representatives continue to hold concerns about the Department’s risk assessment processes. Design and building issues continue to contribute to delays in opening the new complex. And the safety and security dispute continues in the SAET.
Public Sector Review Magazine | DECEMBER 2023
“Our PSA Women’s Network is an important vehicle for us to work collaboratively together, harnessing our collective power and having a strong and influential voice,” Natasha Brown said. To find out more about the PSA Women’s Network, email enquiries@psaofsa.asn.au.
The move follows a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the PSA and State Government in late 2022, which saw car parking charges capped at metropolitan public hospital car parks for workers employed at metropolitan
public hospital sites and covered by the South Australian Public Sector Enterprise Agreement: Salaried 2021. The MoU also extended free public transport to hospital workers unable to access on-site/designated hospital car parking. Earlier this year, these provisions were included as entitlements in a new appendix in the Salaried Agreement.
public transport as their metropolitan hospital counterparts. “ADH employees are essential hospital health workers, based in the Adelaide CBD, who deserve the same entitlement as those workers at designated city and metropolitan hospitals who can now access an entitlement to free public transport,” said PSA General Secretary Natasha Brown.
When surveyed by the PSA, ADH members showed strong interest in having the same entitlement to free
This Commissioner’s determination states that:
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KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
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In October, PSA women members gathered for our annual PSA Women’s Conference, which was an important opportunity to assess what women union members have achieved on the industrial front and what still needs to be done. The theme for this year’s conference was “Hard Won, But Not Yet Done”.
NOT A
ADELAIDE DENTAL HOSPITAL WORKERS FIGHT FOR EQUAL RIGHTS
City Community Children’s Centre began in 1987 as an initiative of the Public Service Association of SA, the Finance Sector Union, and SA Unions, to provide families working in the city with a child care service. The Centre functions on the community based model and provides child care for any parent for any purpose, adhering to the childcare access guidelines provided by the Department for Education.
LEAVE FOR CARING FOR A SICK CHILD Members often contact the PSA Members’ Rights Hotline with queries about leave entitlements, particularly when managers decline leave requests that fall under the category of ‘special leave’. A parent of a dependent sick child may be entitled to up to three days of special leave with pay each year to care for that child.
www.psaofsa.asn.au
As a result of a provision initiated by the PSA some time ago, this provision is separate from, and in addition to, the 15 days of paid leave outlined in the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment’s Determination 3.1, and reflects an important win by the PSA in the South Australian Industrial Relations Commission.
“South Australian Industrial Relations Commission decision 1591/1996 regarding an Application to Vary the Department for Education and Children’s Services Enterprise Agreement 1996 provides further explanation on when an employee is able to make an application for special leave with pay in order to care for a sick child who is a dependent. It provides that there is no requirement to use Personal Leave to care for a sick child prior to accessing this type of leave. Such leave is not accumulative from year to year and does not reduce the entitlement to any other form of leave.” This means that an employee cannot be compelled to use other forms of leave when they meet the requirements for the three days of special leave to care for a sick child. PSA members should contact the PSA Members’ Rights Hotline on 8205 3227 if you have any queries about leave entitlements or believe an application for special leave has been rejected unfairly.
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