'Anger in the room' as Bendigo nurses and midwives consider further action

Around 100 nurses and midwives from central Victoria turned up for a meeting at Bendigo's Shamrock Hotel on Thursday, March 21 on better conditions.

They joined their counterparts in metro Melbourne in voting to apply for a protected industrial action ballot at the Fair Work Commission and push for fairer conditions.

Loretta Marchesi, a registered nurse and Bendigo's industrial relations organiser with the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation's Victorian branch, said she was pleased with the attendance and commitment of workers striving for a positive outcome.

She said issues in the industry included a lack of permanent jobs and a reliance on overtime work.

"The state government, the nurses, the midwives, the Victorian community, can't afford for this enterprise agreement not to address the systemic and increasing casualisation of the workforce and the reduction in the permanent workforce," she said.

"Members were supportive of the progress we have made in the negotiations to date in the non-cost items, but they have unanimously rejected the Victorian government's offer, given the total lack of progress on their cost claims".

The state government offered an annual three per cent wage increase over four years and a cash payment of about $1500 per full-time staff and pro-rata for part-time, which was rejected.

The union wanted about 15 financial incentives to reward working additional permanent hours and unpopular shifts, and to retain a permanent workforce.

It was also seeking the introduction of financial disincentives for unpopular employer rostering practices such as redeployment, excessive reliance on overtime and missed meal breaks.

Industrial officer Mike Cornthwaite said there was a "fair bit of anger in the room" during a question and answer time between workers and the union bosses.

"Frustrations coming from with members [are] that we've kind of hit a point where if it's got a cost associated with it, the government's really quite reluctant to commit to it and agree to it or even discuss it," he said.

"We have been bargaining for about six months now with government, I think we've had over 23 bargaining meetings, meeting twice a week, full day meetings."

Mr Cornthwaite said union members were considering their next steps as it weighed up industrial action.

"You're going to see a lot of red t-shirts, you're going to see a lot of people being active and talking to the community around the state of the health system and the importance of nurses and midwives," he said.

A state government spokesperson said good faith negotiations would continue between the government, the union and the Victorian Hospitals Industrial Association.

"Our nurses and midwives are the very best of us - we will always back them and the extraordinary work they do to provide Victorians with world-class care," the spokesperson said.

"We expect the Victorian Hospitals Industrial Association and the ANMF are negotiating in good faith to reach a resolution as soon as possible."

Since 2014, the nursing and midwifery workforce in Victoria has grown by more than 36 per cent.

According to the union, about 30 per cent of a nurse or midwife's take-home pay comprises allowances above the base rate.

The 2020-24 agreement was set to expire on April 30.

It came as other unions were considering or starting industrial action, inlcuding V/Line workers, and paramedics.

On Monday, Bendigo paramedics chalked slogans on ambulances and stopped collecting patient billing details.