We continue to have to have disputes with health services over their inability or refusal to comply with the terms of enterprise agreements. In many cases we are dealing with entitlements that are clearly outlined in our agreement. It is becoming increasingly clear that health services, including many senior executive managers including IR/HR managers, think that compliance with an enterprise agreement is optional, or even qualified by funding considerations, even though neither is true.
There are too many health services that think they are not accountable under legislation and don’t need to comply with our agreements. Because members have been reporting issues, we have been able to get on top those issues very quickly and ensure that your Agreement entitlements and rights at work are protected. That’s why it is absolutely vital that you continue to report your concerns to us.
Sadly, we also keep tackling the lack of supervision being given to our psychologist members. Members have been reporting that they are not receiving the supervision required under our agreement. We have reports of members either not getting any supervision and being told they won’t get supervision; or they have supervision provided by other psychologists at the same grade within the same health service. None of this is acceptable and is in breach of our agreement which stipulates that supervision has to be provided by someone independent and at a higher grade than the psychologist receiving the supervision.
We have also been alerted to an alarming situation where students are being used to deliver mental health care instead of psychologists employed by the health service to deliver this care. It is a shockingly exploitative situation and is utterly unacceptable. We are following up on these reports. In the meantime, we strongly urge VPA members concerned about the supervision they are receiving (or not receiving) to contact the Union.
