Northern Hospital was at the epicentre of industrial action on Friday after six staff members were locked out of their workplaces by private radiology provider Healthcare Imaging Services [HIS].
Four staff from Northern Hospital and two from Knox Private have been told not to turn up for work, nor will they be paid for the duration of the lockout.
The Victorian Health Professionals Association (VHPA) organised the stopwork at Northern Hospital, Knox Private and The Avenue Hospital at Windsor after HIS declined offers to return to the bargaining table over a log of claims submitted by the union as part of a new enterprise bargaining agreement.
VHPA secretary Craig McGregor said the lockout was an unprecedented action by a healthcare provider.
“HIS management purports to want to resolve this, but if they won’t return to the bargaining table how is this going to happen?” Mr McGregor asked. “Health professionals rarely take industrial action; when they do, you know that they have been left little other option.”
Mr McGregor said while emergency cases were still being dealt with, the ongoing industrial action would have significant impacts on all three hospitals.
“This will particularly be the case at the Northern Hospital, one of Victoria’s busiest.
“The pay rise offered to date is insulting, and refusing to return to bargaining is counterproductive.
“Members know this has impacts not just for their own enterprise agreement but for all private radiology companies.
“Our message to HIS is return the locked-out members to work, come back to the bargaining table and let’s sort this out.”
