Public
Hospitals Dental Assistants (State) Award
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
COMMISSION OF NEW SOUTH WALES
Application by Health
Services Union, Industrial Organisation of Employees.
(No. IRC 1763 of 2008)
Before Commissioner
Bishop
|
23 September 2008
|
AWARD
PART A
1. Arrangement
Clause No. Subject Matter
1. Arrangement
2. Definitions
3. Classifications
4. Anti-Discrimination
5. Conditions
of Employment
6. Rates of
Pay
7. No Extra
Claims
8. Area,
Incidence and Duration
2. Definitions
"Union" means the Health Services Union
"Department" means the New South Wales Department
of Health.
"Hospital" means a public hospital as defined
under section 15 of the Health Services Act 1997.
"Area Health Service" means an Area Health Service
constituted pursuant to section 17 of the Health Services Act 1997.
"Employee" means a person employed in any Hospital
or Area Health Service in the classification of Junior Dental Assistant or
Dental Assistant, Grade 1, 2 or 3.
"Service", unless the context otherwise indicates
or requires, means relevant service before and/or after commencement of this
award in any one or more New South Wales public health organisations or other
organisations deemed acceptable by the Department.
3. Classifications
3.1 Dental Assistant
Grade 1
(a) A dental
assistant grade 1 means a person appointed as such who has successfully
completed a qualification in a relevant field recognised by the Dental
Assistant Education Council of Australia or up to the level of Certificate III
issued by a tertiary education institution or qualifications deemed by the
Department to be equivalent.
(b) Unqualified but
experienced dental assistants can be employed as Dental Assistants Grade 1.
Such employees commence and remain on level 1 year 1 until they obtain formal
qualifications through study or recognition of prior learning. The employee is
responsible for obtaining formal qualifications in their own time and at their
own expense.
3.2 Dental Assistant
Grade 2
(a) A dental
assistant grade 2 means a person who is appointed to such a position and who
has successfully completed a nationally recognised Dental Assisting Certificate
course at Certificate Level IV or qualifications deemed by the Department to be
equivalent.
3.3 Supervision
Allowance
(a) A dental
assistant who, in addition to the normal range of duties, is required to
supervise two or more dental assistants will be paid a supervision allowance.
In order to be paid this allowance, the supervising dental assistant must be
responsible for:
(i) A range of
administrative tasks associated with clinical operations as required by the
Health Service, and
(ii) The day to day
supervision of staff including functions such as rostering, allocation of
duties, conduct of or participation in performance reviews and input into
management decisions.
(b) The supervision
allowance is to be paid as part of the employee’s permanent salary, following a
merit selection process. The rate of allowance paid is dependent upon the
number of employees supervised and is contained in Schedule A to this award. If
an employee is required to relieve for 5 days or more in the role of the
supervisor, and performs all of the duties of the supervisor, then the
supervision allowance will be paid to such employee.
3.4 Dental Assistant
Level 3
(a) Dental assistant
grade 3 means a person who is appointed to such a position and who has a
co-ordinating role across either a number of clinics in a Health Service or has
the same level of responsibility in large teaching hospitals. The Level 3
dental assistant is a promotional position and is not eligible for a
supervision allowance. Generally, if a
level 3 dental assistant is responsible in one location, no other dental
assistants in that clinic would be in receipt of a supervision allowance as
prescribed in Clause 3.3 above.
(b) The scope of
grade 3 positions is Area-wide or a comparable level of responsibility in a
large clinic. Positions which require employees to perform the duties outlined
below, will be graded at level 3.
(c) A level 3 dental
assistant will be required to do most or all of the following duties:
(i) Perform the
usual range of dental assistant duties when required.
(ii) Recruitment of
dental assistants.
(iii) Manage trainee
dental assistant programs.
(iv) Participate in
sector or area wide committees such as infection control, education, and
performance improvement.
(v) Manage/participate
in conflict resolution where required.
(vi) Chair dental
assistant forums and meetings.
(vii) Mentor other
dental assistants in their role as supervisors, including performance
management and review processes.
(viii) Assist in
managing safety issues.
(ix) Manage the
educational needs of dental assistants.
(x) Manage staff
relief across the sector/area.
(xi) Prioritising of
workload in conjunction with oral health practitioners.
(xii) Co-ordinate and
order all stock and consumables including:
liaison with external providers, and
being fully conversant with State contract processes.
(xiii) Ensure the proper
maintenance of equipment through:
training and monitoring of dental assistants in
maintenance duties,
effecting
minor repairs,
co-ordinate
the repair services provided by external and internal providers, and
ensure
contractual requirements of external providers are met.
4.
Anti-Discrimination
(a) It the intention
of the parties bound by this award to seek to achieve the object in section 3
(f) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 to prevent and eliminate
discrimination in the workplace. This
includes discrimination on the grounds of race, sex, marital status,
disability, homosexuality, transgender identity, age and responsibilities as a
carer.
(b) It follows that
in fulfilling their obligations under the dispute resolution procedure prescribed
by this award the parties have obligations to take all reasonable steps to
ensure that the operation of the provisions of this award are not directly or
indirectly discriminatory in their effects.
It will be consistent with the fulfilment of these obligations for the
parties to make application to vary any provision of the award which, by its
terms or operation, has a direct or indirect discriminatory effect.
(c) Under the Anti-Discrimination
Act 1977, it is unlawful to victimise an employee because the employee has
made or may make or has been involved in a complaint of unlawful discrimination
or harassment.
(d) Nothing in this
clause is to be taken to affect:
(i) any conduct or
act which is specifically exempted from anti-discrimination legislation;
(ii) offering or
providing junior rates of pay to persons under 21 years of age;
(iii) any act or
practice of a body established to propagate religion which is exempted under
section 56(d) of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977;
(iv) a party to this
award from pursuing matters of unlawful discrimination in any State or federal
jurisdiction.
(e) This clause does
not create legal rights or obligations in addition to those imposed upon the
parties by the legislation referred to in this clause.
NOTES -
(i) Employers and
employees may also be subject to Commonwealth anti-discrimination legislation.
(ii) Section 56(d)
of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 provides:
"Nothing in this Act affects ... any other act or
practice of a body established to propagate religion that conforms to the
doctrines of that religion or is necessary to avoid injury to the religious
susceptibilities of the adherents of that religion.
5. Conditions of
Employment
Conditions of Employment for employees shall be those
prescribed in the Public Hospital (Professional and Associated Staff)
Conditions of Employment (State) Award, subject to the preservation of accrued
rights for employees transferred from the Public Service on 1 October 1986.
6. Rates of Pay
Salaries shall be in accordance with the rates contained in
the Health Professional Medical Salaries (State) Award.
Previous service as a Dental Assistant is to be taken into
account in determining the commencing salary on employment.
7. No Extra Claims
The parties to this award recognise that the award
extinguishes all work value and special case claims up to the date of making of
this award.
8. Area, Incidence
and Duration
(a) This Award
rescinds and replaces the Public Hospitals Dental Assistants (State) Award
published 10 March 2006 (357 I.G. 983) and all variations thereof.
(b) This Award shall
apply to persons employed in classifications contained herein employed in or in
connection with the New South Wales Health Service as defined in section 16 of
the Health Services Act 1997, or their successors, assignees or
transmittees.
(c) This Award takes
effect from the first pay period commencing on or after 17 September 2008, and
shall remain in force for a period of three years.
E.
A. R. BISHOP, Commissioner
____________________
Printed by
the authority of the Industrial Registrar.