Australia, June 30 -- New South Wales Land and Environment Court issued text of the following judgement on May 30:

1. This decision concerns a consent application to make a new three-year award to apply to around 24 teachers who are employed by the Health Secretary in early childhood education and care centres attached to hospitals and other health facilities.

2. The Health Services Union NSW (HSU) and the Independent Education Union of Australia NSW/ACT Branch (IEU) are parties to the application, along with the Health Secretary.

Background

3. The application was filed by the Heath Secretary on 1 July 2024. The application sought the making of a new award to be known as the Teachers' (NSW Health Early Childhood Service Centres) Salaries and Miscellaneous Conditions Award 2024, with a three-year term and providing increases to existing salaries and salary-related allowances of:

1) 3% from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2024;

2) 3% from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2025; and

3) 3% from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.

4. Other than the change to salaries and salary-related allowances, the proposed new Award represented a 'rollover' of the Teachers' (NSW Health Early Childhood Service Centres) Salaries and Miscellaneous Conditions Award 2023 (2023 Award).

5. The Unions opposed the application. They maintained that the teachers covered by the Award should enjoy the same salaries as teachers employed by the Department of Education and covered by the Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award 2022, and that the increase to salaries and salary-related allowances proposed by the Health Secretary was inadequate. They also sought that the Award conditions be reformed in various respects.

6. Throughout the second half of 2024 I conducted a number of conciliation conferences with the parties and the parties had discussions between themselves, with a view to reaching a consent position in respect of the proposed 2024 Award.

7. As those discussions ended up being quite protracted, in December 2024, the parties agreed, on a without prejudice basis, to vary by consent the 2023 Award, to provide an increase of 3% to salaries and salary-related allowances with effect from 1 July 2024. An application for the proposed consent variation was filed on 26 November 2024 and I ordered that the variation be made on 11 December 2024: Teachers' (NSW Health Early Childhood Service Centres) Salaries and Miscellaneous Conditions Award 2023 - Award Variation [2024] NSWIRComm 1076.

8. The parties thereafter continued to have discussions and have now reached a consent position in respect of a new award.

*Rest of the document can be viewed at: (https://www.caselaw.nsw.gov.au/decision/1971f2463b2df0075fa5987c)

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.