Time to vote via telephonium on the “Proposed variation to Ambulance Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2009″.
This time it’d be nice to actually have some people voting – unlike the three people who did vote last time.
At Azureblues.com we’re not about to tell you which way to vote – suffice to say that voting is important.
Cheers and happy voting.

Despite Ambulance Victoria (AV) running an ambulance service propped up by paramedic goodwill (overtime), AV has managed to secure a 20% pay cut on this goodwill.

It’s remarkable that paramedics were threatened by Fair Work Australia and Ambulance Victoria for even thinking about withdrawing from voluntary overtime (due to fears for public safety) – yet on the other hand Ambulance Victoria allegedly dropped over 20 ambulances from service the other night (allegedly commonplace too). With no repercussions.

Viva La Pay Cuts – except for the boss’ $30,000 pay rise.

Nice.

With the new EBA happening and paramedics likely to experience a pay cut overall, we’re still willing to tackle new skills like Intranasal Fentanyl, IV Dextrose, new burns dressings, and MDI Salbutamol. All of which benefit Joe Public but increases the expectations on the Paramedic in Victoria.

On the other hand, firemen gained allowances for things like CPR. Is it paramedics goodwill or the proactive fire union that made the difference?

Don’t get me wrong, firies rock – especially when they turn up at cardiac arrests to do compressions for us. Good on ‘em for getting the cashola.

Anyhoo – it’s all food for thought. I’m leaning towards feeling that our union has dropped the ball. We’re looking at a capped 2.5% raise while Alfred hospital physio’s, etc are looking at 5+%. good on ‘em too I say. They earned it after falling behind.

Maybe next time for us?

Frightening to say the least!

Is this because of union/eba issues, disillusioned ambos, people “chucking sickies”, or what?

Any way you paint it – don’t get sick.

Solidarity. Mutual goals. And then it all crumbles. Or has it?

So the Ambulance Victoria enterprise bargaining melodrama continues. This time in a more surreptitious manner. Ambulance Victoria has struck an agreement of sorts with the Victorian Ambulance Union (AEAV), a last minute face saving exercise, apparently.

Next came the MICA mass resignations and another last minute agreement between the MICA paramedics and Ambulance Victoria. This assured an improved package for MICA paramedics.

En masse there has been a collective “fair enough too”. But this has left the Victorian work-horse paramedic in an unenviable position.

They can now accept an agreement that has been universally seen as  degrading  pay and conditions or they can say no and go to arbitration.

There are three major problems with arbitration. Number one is that it puts in jeopardy the gains made by MICA paramedics. Secondly the arbitrator could strip the hard earned and required benefits that all paramedics enjoy. And thirdly paramedics could be seen, by Joe Public, as being greedy and ungrateful.

These are interesting and confusing times.

Greed, human nature, comradeship, and so on. A true melodrama is playing out.

You see, there’s been some union-ing goin’ on. And it’s been makin’ me sad.

In fact, of all of the workplaces I’ve ever worked in (and there’s been more than a few), I have never seen such low morale.

Paramedics are just fed up with the enterprise bargaining process and how hamstrung we’ve been by Free Work Australia (FWA) or whatever it’s called.

Unlike just about any other occupation or field of work we paramedics can’t express ourselves with any form of industrial action. No strikes, no stopworks, no overtime bans (despite overtime being voluntary). Even our MICA paramedics have been threatened with mass sackings for expressing their concerns.

Anyhoo, this has been an ill-worded, grammatically rubbish post but I think you get the point.

So in a nutshell:

We, the paramedics of Victoria, feel shafted by the Victorian Government and by our own union, and there’s nothing we can do about it.

Cheers!