April - May 2004 Message from the Secretary Aged care on the agenda Welcome to the April-May ANF NT Branch newsletter. The Branch has been particularly busy with EBA processes and Australian Industrial Relations Commission matters over the last month or so. Not to mention the many member issues that seem to be ever present for nurses across a busy and challenging NT health sector. I attended the ANF Federal Executive meeting in Canberra in February. One of the issues on the agenda was aged care. This sector continues to attract national attention with recent forums such as the AMA Aged Care Summit and the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council sponsored national workshop on aged care workforce issues, keeping the debate at the forefront of the Federal Government's attention. This election year will put pressure on the Government to meaningfully address the funding and workforce issues within the debate. The ANF will also be lobbying hard during the lead up to the election to crystallise, among Federal politicians, the significant national health sector and nursing issues that impede the delivery of health services across Australia. Nurses will be asked to support this process with the ANF nationally as the year unfolds. The Industrial Officer's desk Jane Carrigan Jane's not insignificant workload has revolved around several concurrent enterprise bargaining processes such as the Australian Red Cross, Katherine West Health Board, Sunrise Health Board, and Galuwinku community, along with a number of individual member issues. The more involved issue at the moment for our busy IO and Angela has been a dispute with Aboriginal Hostels Limited (AHL) the employer for Hetti Perkins aged care facility in Alice Springs. The matter is now proceeding through the Australian Industrial Relations Commission. Jane will provide details in the next edition. The Organiser's desk: Roadshows underway Angela Phillips - angela.ntanf@octa4.net.au The last month or so has been quite busy with preparation for the ANF Roadshow, job delegate training, job delegate recruitment as well as worksite visits. The first part of the Roadshow began on 22 March in Tennant Creek and then moved on to Alice Springs on 24 March. Members and job delegates were and are encouraged to get involved and come along to the displays that will be set up at various worksites when the Roadshow is in your area. I have been able to contact all NT works sites over the last month, encouraging members to become a job delegate for their area. Some 200 worksites were canvassed and the ANF NT branch now has another eight job delegates ranging from remote areas, to RDH wards, to aged care. This is exciting news as a growing job delegate network is the backbone of an ANF Branch. These new delegates will be encouraged to attend the job delegate training programs through the year. Worksite visits have begun in earnest in the Darwin urban area. With sites within RDH, DPH, aged care and community care visited or about to be visited. These visits are an opportunity for branch staff to connect with members and job delegates in their worksite - bringing the latest information from the branch and providing opportunities for raising local or generic industrial and professional issues. It also is an opportunity to do some shopping for ANF merchandise which is part of the visit experience. Look for the ANF in your worksite soon. Most regional areas will have the Roadshow worksite visit experience through the year. Dates to remember: Roadshow Tennant Creek to Alice Springs -22-26 March Job Delegate Training - Darwin, 20-22 April Roadshow, Top End - RDH 27-28 April; DPH 29 April; Katherine, 13-14 May Please feel free to contact me should you have worksite issue or if you would like more information about becoming a job delegate. NTPS salary sacrifice Salary sacrifice has been expanded for Northern Territory Public Sector (NTPS) nurses under the provisions of the new Certified Agreement. This means that many public sector nurses will be able to increase their take home pay by salary sacrificing pre tax dollars into approved areas. The ANF, to the time of writing, has not been informed of the outcome of the submission to the Australian Tax Office (ATO) seeking a ruling on whether nurses working in areas such urban community care centres, mental health can access the same salary sacrifice benefits as nurses working in public hospitals. It is perplexing many nurses (as well as ANF staff) as to the different definitions the ATO uses to identify who can and can't access particular salary sacrifice/fringe benefits tax benefits. The ANF will provide information to members as soon as it comes to hand. NTPS CA Taskforce The NTPS CA Review Taskforce will begin operating after Easter. The numerous reviews identified in the Certified Agreement will begin to be addressed by this stand-alone team comprising an ANF position (N7) a DH&CS nurse position (N7) and a senior HR position (AO7). The DH&CS and the ANF NT Branch will circulating expression of interest documents in the very near future. A recruitment process will then occur for these senior nurse positions. NTPS nursing career structure review This important review began last November. The process that has occurred since has been the development of terms of reference and the establishment of a steering committee to drive the review. Details of the terms of reference and steering committee membership can be obtained through contacting Denis at the Branch Office. The committee will have a relationship with the Certified Agreement review process, but with its own steering committee will operate essentially independently. The ANF have lobbied the DH&CS to initiate the meeting of the committee as soon as possible. The Department has cited pressing work commitments and key staff absences as reasons for the delay. Any questions? Ask the ANF If you have a question relating to issues in your work environment or professional life put it in a email to us at ntanf@octa4.net,au. We will respond and publish the question and response, anonymously, in the next newsletter. Free Movie Tickets Recruit a new member and receive a free movie voucher ANF members can receive a free movie ticket to a cinema in Darwin, Katherine or Alice Springs, if they recruit a new member to the ANF NT Branch. Simply send in the completed new member's form with your membership and contact details and we will send out a movie voucher to you nominated cinema by return mail.