New pay offer for nurses and midwives as patient ratio laws pass Parliament

New laws for safer nursing ratios have passed State Parliament, as the Malinauskas Labor Government puts on the table a revised pay offer for the state’s nurses and midwives to deliver a real wage increase above inflation.

The new offer for nurses and midwives includes a 13 per cent pay rise over four years plus bonus payments totalling $4,500 and other incentives.

It comes as new laws to mandate safer staff ratios for nurses, midwives and patients have passed State Parliament, fulfilling a key election promise.

The new South Australian ratios have been modelled on ratios in Victoria and prioritise both patient care and safety, and staff wellbeing, following extensive consultation with the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation.

They ensure the nurse-and-midwife-to-patient ratio meets the requirements of differing patient care areas across nursing and midwifery shifts.

The Malinauskas Labor Government’s revised pay offer has been presented to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation SA Branch (ANMF SA).

The offer includes:

• A 13 per cent pay rise over four years
• Three bonus payments totalling $4,500 ($2,000 on 1 July 2026, $1,500 on 1 July 2027 and $1,000 on 1 July 2028)
• A $3,000 regional service incentive on completion of every three years of post-incentive service
• Introduction of a lead aprons allowance for each shift a nurse is required to wear this equipment
• A commitment to further negotiations to improve on-call and recall allowances and rates
• Enhancing flexible working arrangements, particularly for those employees returning from parental leave
• Supporting career development including clarification of training period for qualification allowance for Enrolled Nurses

In addition, the Government will commit to review the merits of including all babies as patients for the purpose of ratios under the new laws for safer patient ratios

For full-time nurses at the RN1 classification, who make up almost half of our nursing and midwifery workforce, a 13 per cent real wage increase will deliver a wage rise of between $10,212 and $13,934 over the life of the agreement. In addition to this additional wage increase, they will also receive a total of $4,500 paid in three one-off bonus payments.

The Government has recently reached in-principle agreement with the United Workers Union (UWU) on a new enterprise agreement that will deliver significant cost of living support to thousands of public sector workers, including hospital orderlies and sterilisation technicians, catering and security services, and more.

This is in addition to recently commenced agreements with public sector allied health workers and public sector doctors.

This reflects the Government’s commitment to bargaining in good faith for enterprise agreements that deliver real wage increases to workers while ensuring the ongoing delivery of vital public health services.

The proposed enterprise agreement offer is in addition to the significant investments and commitments the Malinauskas Government has already made in the public health system, including more than 600 new hospital beds and the recruitment of more than 2,700 additional health workers between March 2022 and March 2025.

This recruitment includes 1,462 extra nurses and midwives above attrition, more than four times the Government’s election commitment to recruit 300 extra nurses.

Quotes

Attributable to Kyam Maher

We know our nurses and midwives work hard to care for South Australians and they deserve a fair pay rise that would deliver a real wage increase.

The Government is committed to bargaining in good faith to reach a new enterprise agreement for public sector nurses and midwives that strikes the right balance of real wage increases and responsible budgetary management.

This latest offer shows the Government is once again committed to supporting our health workers who look after the South Australian community.

Attributable to Chris Picton

Our nurses and midwives are the backbone of our health system, working incredibly hard every day to care for South Australians.

They deserve a fair and reasonable pay rise which is exactly what we are offering, plus bonus payments and other incentives.

In addition, we have worked closely with the ANMF to introduce new laws to mandate safer staff ratios for nurses, midwives and patients across our hospitals.

These laws have now passed Parliament – a major win for South Australian patients, nurses and midwives.