The City of Greater Geelong Council (CoGG) told workers on April 2 that it intends to close its aged care service. This move will leave 300 people without jobs and thousands of residents without in-home care. CoGC breached its enterprise agreement by giving workers five days’ notice before “consultation” on the plan.
The vote was to be at a closed council meeting put on April 10, but has now been deferred until the results of a Fair Work Commission (FWC) hearing.
Council officers said its recommendation comes in the wake of Labor’s New Aged Care Act, which starts on July 1.
Council’s website states that “specialised providers are best-placed to provide this service in this new environment”. It said CoGC had made the “difficult decision” to recommend that council “exit all in-home community care services, ensuring that specialist providers continue to provide the best standard of care possible”.
The Australian Services Union (ASU), which covers council workers, rallied on April 8 after the union had taken CoGC to the FWC. The results are yet to be made public.
Angry community workers, unionists and residents attended, including some who picketed the staff carpark, prompting Liberal Mayor Stretch Kontelj to drive up to them, before parking elsewhere and coming back to argue.
Kontelj defended CoGC’s recommendation, but said no decision had been made.
Asked why council’s website says it will no longer provide the service, despite no vote being taken, Kontelj replied he “100% understood” concerns, but that they needed to “relax”.
ASU Deputy Branch Secretary Zoe Edwards told the protest that council would make a decision in May and that an alternative motion to not fully exit from aged-care services was on the table, although she had not seen the details.
“This service is about supporting the elderly with quality jobs on quality pay [and] to prevent people having to go into aged care,” Edwards said.
Community care workers said the same, adding that they are worried about losing their jobs and leaving the elderly in the lurch.
Some say the Liberal Party advised its councillors to pause a decision until after May 3 because they want to avoid a backlash at the polls.
Federal Labor MP for Corangamite Libby Coker and Victorian Labor MPs Christine Couzens, Ella George and Alison Marchant, pledged to support council’s aged care workers. Couzens said the move to scrap the service was an example of council’s “back-to-basics” promises and urged the crowd to continue fighting.
Councillors Elise Wilkinson, Melissa Cadwell and Emma Sinclair attended. Deputy Mayor Ron Nelson and councillor Chris Burson, formerly of the Angry Victorians party, observed from a distance.
[The Australian Services Union is urging people to sign its petition and email letters to the Councillor Group. Angela Carr is a member of the ASU.]
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