Enterprise bargaining
The process for developing a new enterprise agreement for the ASC continued throughout 2014–15. Bargaining within the ASC is ongoing with the aim of having a new agreement ready for staff to consider early in 2015–16.
The ASC is working with staff and stakeholders to develop a new agreement that balances staff interests, organisational requirements and bargaining guidelines with the budgetary and government environment. The agreement needs to be affordable across its life and underpinned by commensurate cash and productivity savings.
Work health and safety
The ASC’s Work Health and Safety Governance Forum which oversees systems for the management of workplace health, safety and rehabilitation met on five occasions during the year. The forum approved a new rehabilitation management policy for the ASC and amended its terms of reference to strengthen the focus on the ASC’s rehabilitation management system. Other outcomes from this forum include:
- the adoption of performance measures for rehabilitation management to be incorporated in existing performance reporting on work health and safety
- CEO appointment of three additional ‘case managers’ (from within existing resources), increasing the capacity and capability of the ASC to manage employee rehabilitation in accordance with obligations under the Safety Rehabilitation Compensation Act 1988
- new service level agreements with external rehabilitation service providers used by the ASC that include prescribed service-delivery standards.
The forum reviewed two systems performance reports which it subsequently provided to the ASC Executive and the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.
The operationally focussed WorkSafe Committee met every two months. It oversaw the expansion of the ASC’s network of workplace health and safety representatives to ensure adequate representation and increased capability appropriate to the changed workforce structure and locations. The majority of new representatives have completed mandatory training, with training for those remaining scheduled for next year.