However, AMA Victoria President Dr Roderick McRae said private operators had been generously remunerated for offering workers into the public system.
“I am aware that private hospitals negotiated very tough and profitable contractual agreements with the government for the provision of these services,” he said.
“AMA Victoria is not opposed to private companies, which are making massive profits and making a profit, equaling the supply.”
Lisa Fitzpatrick, secretary of the Victorian branch of the Australian Federation of Nursing and Midwives, said the union had written to all private hospital employers asking them to pay their workers a similar bonus.
“[The union] I would like all our members to receive a retention premium, regardless of the industry in which they work, “he said.[We] we will not enter into a discussion about who should pay, we just want our members to be valued. “
Fitzpatrick also said private hospitals had received significant funding to carry out public works.
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A Victorian government spokeswoman said private hospitals were responsible for the salaries of their staff. “We would very much like the decision of private providers to choose to implement their own attraction and retention initiatives,” he said.
Shares of Ramsay Health Care rose more than 25 percent in April after a consortium of investors offered $ 20 billion to take over. However, a hospital network spokeswoman said the pandemic had wiped out $ 600 million from the results of its Australian arm, compared to the $ 65 million it had received in government payments.
The spokeswoman said the bonuses, also made to attract staff, would cannibalize health workers in private hospitals.
“It is not a good long-term solution to the crisis in the national health workforce,” he said. “Without the support of the private sector, the system will not work.”
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St John of God Health Care and the nonprofit Epworth HealthCare confirmed that they had jointly signed a letter to the state government.
“Over the past few years, our private Victoria hospitals have been caring for patients, removing pressure from the public health system and helping to support the local community,” said Dr. Shane Kelly, executive director of St John of God.
Epworth chief executive Dr Lachlan Henderson said the decision to exclude private healthcare workers was “incredibly disappointing”.
To be eligible for the $ 3,000 bonus, workers must be employed by the state public health service by July 1 and continue working on September 30. The first $ 1,500 payment will be made on August 15 and the second in late September. Part-time and casual staff will receive a proportional payment.
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