The Fair Work Commission has made changes to the Nurses Award 2010 (Award). These changes come into effect from 9 September 2021.
What are the main changes?
- The definition of “casual hourly rate” set out in clause 2 now refers to clause 11.2 to maintain consistency of terminology and avoid confusion as there was previously more than one definition of the term in the Nurses Award.
- Clause 11.5 amended to clarify how casual loading and shiftwork interact – that is that the ‘ordinary rate of pay’ for casual employees in the Nurses Award is the casual loaded rate.
- Removal of unnecessary wording ‘applicable to their classification and pay point’ after ‘casual hourly rate’ in several clauses to ensure consistency of language concerning rates of pay.
- Wording added to clauses 13.4(c) Rest breaks between rostered work, 19.4(c) Rest period after overtime and 28.2(b) Payment for work done on public holidays to clarify that the penalty rates specified are applied to the ‘casual hourly rate in the case of a casual employee’.
- Wording added to clause 28.6 Additional leave days by mutual agreement to clarify that clause 28.6 does not apply to casual employees.
Other changes incorporated into the final variation determination include the following:
- Clause X.1 updated in accordance with the Fair Work Commission determination (AM2021/15 and Ors) to have Schedule X of Health sector awards operative until 31 December 2021.
- Inclusion of summaries of rates of pay and allowances in the schedules of the Nurses Award in accordance with the Annual Wage Review 2020-21 decision operative from the start of the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2021.
- The varied Nurses Award will have the year ‘2020’ in its title instead of ‘2010’.
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