Awards and Agreements explained
AWARDS
An Award is a legal document that sets out the pay and conditions under which you are employed. It includes your Contract of Employment with your employer.

The Award is negotiated by your union with employers in the Industrial Relations Commission.

What usually happens is that a union makes a claim on an employer, or number of employers (this is called a log of claims)

The claim is then debated in the Industrial Relations Commission and eventually may be registered as an Award.

Once an Award is in place it becomes the Safety Net for your pay and conditions. While an employer may pay above Award rates, or offer some better conditions, they cannot legally pay below the Award.

As an Award (usually) applies across an industry it means everyone knows where they stand, and that all employees can have some confidence that they will paid decently. It means wages and conditions cannot be undercut by unscrupulous employers.

The Industrial Relations Commission has the power to ensure the Award is fair and in the public interest. Unions have an interest in ensuring that no employer breaches the Award. Employers have the certainty of knowing what they should pay.

Each year, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (the ACTU) makes application on behalf of all unions and members to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission for adjustments to the Award rates of pay (the Living Wage Case).

The Award system is unique to Australia and has helped our country create wealth, and also distribute wealth more fairly.

UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS
(FORMERLY KNOWN AS ENTERPRISE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS) 

Where an Award covers everyone in a whole industry, a Collective Agreement covers an enterprise. The idea is that an enterprise (say a hospital or nursing home) has particular needs, problems, and opportunities.

The Award (it is argued) and the enterprise are not a good fit as an Award does not have the right mix of pay and conditions for every enterprise covered by it.

A Collective Agreement doesn't replace the Award. A Collective Agreement only operates for a set period, say 2 years, and replaces the relevant clauses in the Award for that period. So, if the hours are changed in a Collective agreement they are not changed in the Award.

Pay increases in Collective Agreements are generally based on productivity improvements, that is, the parties to the agreement usually try and identify savings or ways of increasing revenue that will pay for any pay increase.

To view the Agreement or Award that covers you click on the relevant pages below:

HSU Victorian Awards and Agreements

HSU Health Professionals Awards and Agreements

Other Informative Sites:

The Workplace Relations Act: www.airc.gov.au/procedures/wra/wra.html

Victorian Workcover Authority: www.workcover.vic.gov.au

OHS Reps Website: www.ohsrep.org.au

The Equal Opportunities Commission: www.eoc.vic.gov.au

Legal

www.mauriceblackburn.com.au

Superannuation:

HESTA www.hesta.com.au

HEALTH SUPER www.healthsuper.com.au