Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation (NSW) v Health Secretary in respect of the Western Sydney Local Health District [2021] NSWIRComm 1002

Industrial Relations Commission New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Australian Salaried Medical Officers' Federation (NSW) v Health Secretary in respect of the Western Sydney Local Health District [2021] NSWIRComm 1002 Hearing dates: 20 January 2021 Date of orders: 29 January 2021 Decision date: 29 January 2021 Jurisdiction: Industrial Relations Commission Before: Chief Commissioner Constant Decision: 1. I find that there is a dispute between the parties in respect of: the termination of the arrangements and purported agreements; whether such termination may be effected unilaterally; and if so, the terms of engagement including in respect of rosters and private practice rights which will apply. This dispute is within the meaning of "issue" in cl 3(b) of the Staff Specialists (State) Award 2019. The parties are required to maintain the status quo which existed before the emergence of the issue until the exhaustion of the Issue Resolution procedures in cl 3 of the Award. 2. I recommend that the parties continue to operate in accordance with the terms of the relevant work practices and procedures applying to the Radiologists immediately before 3 August 2020, including where relevant, the terms of the 2015 Westmead Agreement and the 2004 Blacktown Agreement, until the exhaustion of the Issue Resolution procedures in cl 3 of the Award. Catchwords: EMPLOYMENT AND INDUSTRIAL LAW – Award interpretation – relevant principles to be applied – meaning and application of status quo provision in the award – what is an "issue" pursuant to the award Legislation Cited: Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW), ss 12, 130, 135, 136, 175 Cases Cited: Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation (NSW) v Ministry of Health [2019] NSWIRComm 1041 Fire Brigade Employees' Union of NSW v Fire And Rescue NSW [2020] NSWIRComm 1022 New South Wales Nurses and Midwives' Association v Health Secretary on behalf of Western NSW Local Health District [2019] NSWIRComm 1025 Public Service Association and Professional Officers' Association Amalgamated Union of New South Wales v Secretary for Industrial Relations [2018] NSWIRComm 1061 Category: Procedural rulings Parties: Australian Salaried Medical Officers' Federation (NSW) (notifier) Health Secretary in respect of the Western Sydney Local Health District (respondent) Representation: Counsel: L Saunders (notifier) D Fuller (respondent) File Number(s): 2020/316034