Health workers will ramp up industrial action from Wednesday after eight months of stalled pay negotiations with the Tasmanian government.
The Health and Community Services Union (HACSU) has announced new work bans, including stopping administrative tasks, cleaning, answering phones and collecting blood samples and linen.
HACSU state secretary Robbie Moore said the escalated action was aimed at management, not patients.
“We will not be putting patient’s lives at risk,” he said. “This is not something we are doing lightly.”
The union lodged its log of claims in March but says the government has failed to deliver a three-year offer that addresses wages and working conditions.
“Members across the state have endorsed the escalation of their industrial action as it has been made clear by the premier that he, as their employer, has no intention of treating them with respect,” Moore wrote to the head of the state service on Monday.
The action involves allied health professionals, including physiotherapists, occupational therapists, radiographers and dental officers across Tasmania’s north, south and north-west.
Moore said the bans would hit revenue collection and force management to step in to cover some tasks.
Health Minister Bridget Archer said the government wanted workers to receive a pay rise before Christmas.
“We would really encourage the union to stop those work bans and come back to the negotiating table,” she said on Monday.
The government has a 3% offer on the table until November 28, which Archer described as a “rollover offer” while negotiations continue.
“That negotiation in good faith is a two-way street and we really would like the unions to stop their work bans and come back to the negotiating table,” she said.
Moore said workers were frustrated after months of waiting for a pay rise.
“Workers are very angry,” he said. “They have had enough and they want certainty.”
Thousands of public servants, including teachers, stopped work last week and rallied across the state, calling for better enterprise bargaining outcomes.
