The Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union (QNMU) has called on the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) Queensland branch to pay highly qualified nurses what they are worth.   
 
QNMU Secretary Kate Veach said the QNMU and RFDS nurses, most of whom hold both nursing and midwifery degrees, are currently paid less than their Queensland Health (QH) colleagues.   
 
Ms Veach said RFDS nurses provided both emergency medical response and patient retrieval as well as Primary Health Care (PHC) for entire communities in isolated areas.
  
Some RFDS nurses are qualified to provide care during aeromedical retrievals in times of crisis. RFDS PHC nurses are flown into remote areas to routinely staff Queensland Health (QH) clinics and provide health care for entire communities including babies, children and women.
  
She said RFDS nurses were highly skilled and deserved the same pay and conditions as their QH colleagues.  
 
The QNMU entered into Enterprise Bargaining (EB) negotiations with RFDS management on April 26, however RFDS management rejected every suggestion put by employees for change.   
 
“Royal Flying Doctor Service nurses are uniquely skilled to provide a very high level of care in often extremely challenging circumstances,” Ms Veach said.  
 
“The Royal Flying Doctor Service receives vast amounts of both state and federal   
government funding, as well as public donations.    
 
“It is apparent the Royal Flying Doctor Service doesn’t recognise or value the skill set and contributions of these incredible nurses.”   
 
Ms Veach said the QNMU believed the RFDS could afford to provide fair pay and conditions.   
 
The RFDS website states: In June last year, the State Government committed to an extra $334 million, 10-year commitment to the RFDS to deliver essential services to regional, rural and remote Queensland. https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/qld/news/rfds-welcomes-10-year-partnership-queensland-government/   
 
It also states that in March last year, the Federal Government committed to a ten-year, $1 billion partnership between the Australian Government and the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) nationally – which includes funding for Queensland. https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/news/australian-government-announces-flying-doctor-10-year-strategic-partnership/   
 
The RFDS also receives public donations. The Herald Sun recently reported the service received a $16 million donation from mining magnate Gina Reinhart. https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/gina-rinehart-donates-16-million-to-boost-healthcare-for-rural-australians/news-story/2e1b2a66c0df23c5be16fe3b3050a9f6   
 
Ms Veach said RFDS nurses wanted pay and condition parity with QH, including appropriate penalty rates to cover overtime, shiftwork, on call allowance and public holiday work. RFDS nurses currently receive up to 26% less pay than those in QH and many private hospitals, with less superannuation and reduced penalty rates. They also do not receive additional pay for overtime or time spent on call.   
 
QH pay and conditions has long been the benchmark for many Queensland health organisations including private hospitals and charitable organisations.  
 
Ms Veach said RFDS nurses, many of whom also have post graduate qualifications and are skilled in intensive care and emergency medicine, were passionate about their work and fiercely loyal. She said they have been forced to take action to receive the entitlements they deserve.    
 
RFDS nurses told the QNMU:   

• To work here you must be a nurse and a midwife specialising in critical care or emergency. This comes on top of five years’ experience with three years in a permanent position in critical care. The skill set required is phenomenal, there aren’t that many people out there with this skill set, but the pay and conditions make it near impossible to stay. 
• So why do we do the job? It’s the only retrieval service where you can do the job you love, there’s no competitor. We go to stations ambulances can’t get to, road accidents in places the Queensland Ambulance Service can’t access, we are delivering quality care in the furthest corners. The hours are challenging but it wouldn’t matter if the pay was fair. But it’s nowhere near fair.
• I think it’s important to know something like 75% of flights are just nurses, no doctor. There is only a doctor on selected flights or when we request one. Nurses here are highly skilled and able to operate autonomously with a large scope of practice. I believe this skill set should be rewarded with fair pay and conditions.
• Primary Health Care nurses fly into isolated areas to provide care for entire communities including children in often challenging circumstances. We encounter everything from wounds to heart attacks or children’s health issues. It’s not an easy job but it’s incredibly rewarding. However, we do deserve fair pay.
• In some areas the conditions are unsafe, we are away from home, impacted and isolated by weather conditions and encountering and providing care for everything from birth to death, chronic disease and emergencies. We love what we do, but we want and deserve recognition, pay parity and to be valued. I think that’s fair.
• Without fair pay and conditions, I’m not sure if there is a future with the RFDS.   

 
Rural, regional and metropolitan communities throughout Queensland and interstate have thrown their support behind Queensland RFDS nurses, with more than 2500 petition signatures collected in recent days.    
 
“Queenslanders and Australians continue to sign a petition to see the Royal Flying Doctor Service grant highly skilled staff the pay and conditions they deserve,” Ms Veach said.   
 
“We’re hearing outrage from rural communities and those in major cities who love and respect these nurses. Royal Flying Doctor Service nurses help during times of crisis and also assist with everything from birthing babies to chronic health in isolated areas.   
 
“They are the backbone of an essential and iconic service. They should be treated with fairness and respect.”   
 
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) or inflation is currently increasing at the rate of 6% and any wage increase that does not match CPI is a pay cut in real terms. Over the last three years, RFDS wage increases have fallen behind the CPI rate by a cumulative total of 3.5%.   
 
The QNMU is seeking the RFDS: 

• Align base rates of pay with the equivalent levels and pay points at Queensland Health 
• Retain the 4% loading for nurses who are also employed as midwives
• Increase the shiftwork loading from 25% to 35%, to accurately account for the overtime rates, shift penalties, on call allowance and public holiday rates available to QH staff at the same level.   

 
QNMU negotiations with RFDS will continue in coming days. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has been asked to assist after negotiations failed to advance. The QNMU will not rest until the RFDS provides the pay and conditions nurses deserve.
Contact: 0422 550 278