HACSU and the ANMF protest Launceston General Hospital jobs hanging in the balance

The workers in question, which account for 23 full-time equivalent positions, include ward clerks, hospital aides and environmental service officers who were employed through Australian Government funding.

These were initially employed to support nurses and midwives with increased infection prevention and control protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic and have since taken on other duties.

The unions are calling for the state government to fund the positions, however a Tasmanian Government spokesperson said it was a matter for the Department of Health.

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Assistant state secretary at the Health and Community Services Union (HACSU) Lucas Digney said although they were not frontline medical personnel, the employees were vital to the hospital's day-to-day operations.

"If those positions are removed that we'll see a further reduction in service," Mr Digney said.

"It's likely that we'll see pressure on beds in surgical and medical wards, and we'll see further pressure on the flow of patients throughout the hospital."

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Mr Digney said the union had been in discussions with the Department of Health regarding the support staff since the start of 2023, and the lack of funding in the 2023-24 Budget had left the workers feeling "anxious and trepidatious".

The union leader did not rule out the possibility of further industrial action if the state government did not intervene before the workers' contracts end on June 17.

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HACSU delegate and ward clerk Elizabeth Dominy said support staff were among the first people a patient or their family encountered at the hospital, and their absence would be noticeable.

"It's putting patient notes together and making sure that the notes are correctly collated," Ms Dominy said.

"It's also providing a customer service reception area for the visitors and also for the patients as well.

"Visitors need to press a button on the intercom to be able to enter the ward. If a ward clerk is not there, then the visitors won't be able to come in."

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Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Tasmanian branch secretary Emily Shepherd said the recent budget put too much emphasis on "brick and mortar" projects rather than staff.

"The reality is, the lessons learnt from COVID-19 during the pandemic remain," she said.

"We need to have these support positions from an infection control perspective. We absolutely need to ensure that they remain not just for COVID but for influenza and other infectious diseases.

"This is best practice and losing these positions puts patients, our workforce and our Tasmanian community at risk."

Ms Shepherd said a greater burden would be placed on nurses without the support staff, which would distract from clinical duties and potentially jeopardise the hospital's accreditation.

The Department of Health spokesperson said Tasmania, along with other states and territories, has unsuccessfully sought at a national level for the new agreement to be more broad.

"The Department is currently reviewing how these temporary COVID-19-focused roles may fit in the workplace going forward and we will continue to work with staff who are reaching the end of their contracts," the spokesperson said.

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