News
Protecting your pay and rest
Tuesday April 15, 2025
The AMA (WA) continues to push back against unsafe rostering practices and unfair pay interpretations, securing real improvements for Doctors in Training while holding WA Health to account on your entitlements.
Mandatory breaks following night shifts
Following concerns raised by members, particularly within CAHS, that night shift breaks were being ignored by rostering overnight on-call immediately after night shifts, not being compliant with the 2024 Agreement provisions around mandatory 24-48hour breaks following a sequence of night shifts, the AMA (WA) escalated the issue to System-Wide Industrial Relations (SWIR).
The outcome is a clear win for members: SWIR issued instructions to all HSPs on 31 March 2025 that “nights rostered” referred to at subclause 15(6)(g) in the 2024 Agreement refers to ordinary rostered night shifts only, not also to nights rostered on call.
That means:
- You must receive 24 hours off (including on call) after 1–3 night shifts;
- You must receive 48 hours off after 4–5 night shifts; and
- Night on-call does not count toward your maximum consecutive nights or affect your leave.
This clarification applies system-wide, and changes must now be reflected in the next cycle of DiT rosters.
Extended Shift Rates and overtime penalty interaction
At the same time, the AMA (WA) is in an ongoing dispute with WA Health over how Extended Shift Rates (ESR) apply to hours worked beyond 80 in a fortnight. The AMA (WA)’s position is that ESR applies to all paid hours worked (excluding hours paid as recall) whereas WA Health’s current position is that ESR only applies to ‘ordinary hours’ being less than 80 hours in a fortnight.
In many cases, ESR penalties, such as 200% for Sunday shifts, are higher than the 150% overtime rate for hours between 80 and 120. Excluding ESR from paid overtime hours is not just legally questionable – it undermines the value of your work.
After sustained pressure from AMA (WA) DiT Co-Chairs, delegates, and members, WA Health has referred the matter to the State Solicitor’s Office. Regardless of that outcome, the AMA (WA) is prepared to escalate the issue to the WA Industrial Relations Commission to defend members’ rights.
Back pay secured for ESR start date
Members also flagged that ESR was only being applied from 2 December 2024, despite the new WA Health System – Medical Practitioners – AMA Industrial Agreement 2024 (the 2024 Agreement) coming into effect from 28 November. After raising the issue, HSS updated its guidance, conducted an audit, and issued back payments on 27 March 2025 to affected doctors.
These wins, and our ability to keep pushing, depend on member involvement. If you see issues with your pay or rostering, or want to play a role in workplace advocacy, get in touch with the AMA (WA) Industrial Team at industrial@amawa.com.au.
When doctors stand together, we win.
