Over the past 12 months, many Australian public sector authorities have chosen to make a decision under the Public Service Act 1999 (Cth) rather than enter into negotiations on a new agreement. The positive outcome of the negotiations in Victoria could lead to renewed pressure on federal authorities to return to the negotiating table in 2021. Taking into account changing priorities is essential to create a secure and flexible employment environment in the public sector. The parties recognized the importance of ensuring that personnel can be deployed quickly to support government priorities. The Victoria State Public Service Undertaking Agreement 2020 came into force on 9 October 2020 with a nominal expiry date of 20 March 2024. The ministry is starting negotiations on a new company agreement covering nurses in elementary and secondary school programs covered by the 2016 Ministry of Education and Training. This context is reflected in the outcome of the negotiations, in particular as regards the «mobility principles» and «mobility payments» in Articles 15 to 16 of the VPS EZ. Together, these regulations aim to promote labour mobility and ensure that VPS staff can be deployed quickly to support changing government priorities. The EA VPS is much longer than the 2016 VPS Agreement (470 pages vs.
360 pages). Part of the extra length is due to the addition of a new part dedicated to flexible working arrangements and other flexibility mechanisms scattered throughout the agreement. Again, it will be very interesting to see how these provisions are applied in practice and how they interact with the provisions relating to consultation, job security, the usual work environment, etc. The new Victorian State Public Service Enterprise (VPS EA) agreement was approved by the Fair Work Commission on 2 October 2020, following a series of negotiations that took place in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and significant government intervention at the federal and state levels – both in terms of stimulus measures and public health restrictions. The Victorian Public Service Undertaking Agreement 2020 was officially approved by the Fair Work Commission on 2 October 2020 and put into operation on 9 October 2020. Victorian Public Service Enterprise Agreement 2020 (PDF, 6.33 MB) There are collective agreements for all employees employed by the ministry. To access the appropriate agreement, select one of the following job categories. Gostencnik DP`s approval decision contains some interesting technical points on the application of the slippage rule under Section 602 of the FW Act with respect to errors detected during the legislature and on the extent of the Tribunal`s discretion to waive minor procedural or technical errors under Section 188(2)(a): see [2020] FWCA 5215. However, there are various agreements that apply to large parts of the Victorian public sector. One of them is the Victoria Public Utilities Agreement 2020.
It contains information on grades, salary ranges and other general conditions of employment for the respective ministries and agencies. Other important changes to the content of the VPS EA include improving paid parental leave rights for primary and secondary carers (Section 55) and the introduction of «principles of equal gender pay» (Section 28) to strengthen reporting obligations under the Gender Equality Act 2020 (Vic). On 31 July 2020, a notice on employee representation rights to relevant staff with regard to the draft Nurses Agreement (Ministry of Education and Training) 2020 was published. The notice is a formal requirement under the Fair Work Act, 2009 and explains the right of employees to be represented by a negotiator with respect to the proposed agreement. Although the specific benefits vary depending on the public sector organization in which you are employed and the respective company agreements, you can generally expect some benefits. See Benefits. Depending on the grade of a job, a salary group is applied. This salary bracket reflects the level of qualification and performance required for the position. The salaries that apply to a particular role are described in detail in the applicable company agreement. This may be a generous result given the government`s competing priorities and the general uncertainty employers face. .