New South Wales paramedics will run five days of industrial action from Friday night following a last-minute union decision.
Key points:
- The paramedic union is calling for a salary increase above the 2.5 percent limit rate
- Ambulance services saw their biggest delay and waiting time during the Sydney Delta outbreak
- The industrial action will last five days, until June 1
The Australian Paramedics Association (APA) has advanced its industrial action in the workplace which was scheduled to begin on Monday instead of negotiations with the NSW government on a pay rise and a resource deficit.
APA industry leader Bree Jacobs said the union, which cares for thousands of health workers, was forced to act when the NSW government called for the intervention of the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC).
“Under the state system, it is very difficult for any worker to take industrial action,” Ms Jacobs said.
“We are trying to fight for our rights and play by the rules that this government has set.”
NSW Ambulance said in a statement that it had asked for IRC support “to resolve this planned action.”
“Patient safety is our top priority and NSW Ambulance has operational plans in place to minimize disruption to the community,” the statement said.
During the Delta outbreak, paramedics were forced to queue at Westmead Hospital for hours.
The action will cause paramedics to choose not to record billing information and stay in their own area of home station.
This would mean that patients who call triple-0 and receive emergency treatment from paramedics will not receive any bills.
But the union hopes that the state government will suffer.
“For the community, you don’t have to worry in case of an emergency, there will be an ambulance,” Ms. Jacobs said.
“We’re not going to turn around just to be given a few more empty words.”
NSW Public Service has a 2.5 per cent legal limit for salary increases.
The union is calling for more than 1,500 paramedics, a network of community care specialists and a pay rise.
At the height of the Delta blockade, the bays of Sydney Hospital saw an ambulance delay waiting for hours until a bed was released.
The action, which will run for five days until June 1, comes after NSW Ambulance moved to offer alternative travel arrangements for patients who do not require emergency care.
“This program would only be used for people who have called triple-0, who have been evaluated by a doctor as they do not require an ambulance response and cannot reach a healthcare provider,” a spokesman said. of the NSW ambulance.
Prime Minister Dominic Perrottet said the move would help counter non-emergency calls to triple-0.
“What we are seeing is more and more now that people are calling the triple-0 at a time when there is no emergency within reach.
“We will be investing more in our paramedics as part of this year’s budget and this is incredibly important because they are doing an amazing job at our front line every day offering this care and support.”
Ms Jacobs said praise from the prime minister’s office was not enough for “overworked paramedics”.
“Our healthcare system is in crisis; the NSW government has a lot of empty words for all kinds of healthcare workers … but they won’t really take any action when it shrinks.”
Posted 6 hours, 6 hours ago, Friday, May 27, 2022 at 8:24 AM, last updated 3 hours, 3 hours ago, Friday, May 27, 2022 at 11:24 AM