Dear HACSU members,

DHHS DDSO’s will receive a 3% wage increase this Thursday 18 January 2018.

This has been won by HACSU members campaigning to protect disability services. The increase is detailed in the settlement document (click here to view) provided to the HACSU DHHS members at the state-wide meeting on December 19, 2017 and emailed to all members (who have provided HACSU with a valid email address) on the same day. Note that this document was posted to all DHHS group homes.

If you have not yet read the information contained in the settlement document, please click here to do so.

HACSU has been advised that the $1000 sign on bonus will be paid in the following fortnight. 

Although we have won wage increases, it is still important to note the EBA negotiations have not finished, and bans are remaining in place to see an agreement is reached as soon as possible. It is important to note that whilst the intention is to embed the settlement document wage increases and job security measures within our next EBA, considerable work remains to be done to negotiate the final details of both the settlement itself and the broader EBA claim.

We are aware that members have many questions regarding the settlement document and the EBA. Please note that the union has provided ALL INFORMATION we currently have to members. Negotiations with Government over the EBA and the settlement will resume this week, and updates will provided to members  as further information becomes available.

We will be taking member concerns to all meetings with government, you can help us by submitting your questions here.

HACSU State secretary, Lloyd Williams will be hosting a series of regional consultative meetings with DHHS members in January and February this year, please click here to see the current dates and times, note that venues are still to be determined.

While HACSU remain strongly opposed to the Government’s contacting out agenda., the settlement document, won by HACSU members, details important protections for job security during this transition, including an 8-year period of job security over two EBAs, a 29% wage increase over the same period, plus additional lump sum and transfer payment totaling $17,000 for full time workers (pro-rata for part timers).

A reminder that we have also prepared a short survey to further understand member’s information needs, please click here to submit your questions.

To ensure there is continued pressure on the Government to finalise the EBA, members must maintain all existing work bans. Again, we congratulate all members who have been actively participating in the union campaigns, work bans and the community campaigning, this has won members the best disability workers agreement in Australia as the disability landscape around the country changes.

We look forward to a big year in 2018.