Health Services Union
Encyclopedia
The Health Services Union (HSU) is a specialist health union
with over 70,000 members working in all areas of healthcare across Australia
.
The membership of the union includes doctors
, nurses and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists and radiographers
, ambulance
officers, clerical and administrative staff, managers and support staff. Due to Australia's industrial relations system HSU coverage in Queensland
only extends as far as health workers servicing Aboriginal health. The Australian Workers Union (AWU) in particular, but also the Australian Services Union
(ASU) and the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union
(LHMU) primarily represent the positions the HSU would represent in Queensland.
The national office of the Health Services Union of Australia is located in South Melbourne
in Melbourne
. Its current National Secretary is Kathy Jackson
.
employees were first formed in Australia
.
Over the years the membership of the unions that eventually came together to form the HSUA has been based around a nucleus of hospital staff and psychiatric care staff. But it has gone much further to include ambulance, aged care, community health
, disability
sector, hospital scientists, mental
health and drug
and alcohol
workers.
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
with over 70,000 members working in all areas of healthcare across Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
The membership of the union includes doctors
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, nurses and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists and radiographers
Radiography
Radiography is the use of X-rays to view a non-uniformly composed material such as the human body. By using the physical properties of the ray an image can be developed which displays areas of different density and composition....
, ambulance
Ambulance
An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...
officers, clerical and administrative staff, managers and support staff. Due to Australia's industrial relations system HSU coverage in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
only extends as far as health workers servicing Aboriginal health. The Australian Workers Union (AWU) in particular, but also the Australian Services Union
Australian Services Union
The Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union, which operates under the trading name of the Australian Services Union or ASU, is a trade union that represents members in a variety of industries.-Union history:...
(ASU) and the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union
Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union
United Voice, formerly known as the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union is a large Australian trade union, with around 130,000 members...
(LHMU) primarily represent the positions the HSU would represent in Queensland.
The national office of the Health Services Union of Australia is located in South Melbourne
South Melbourne, Victoria
South Melbourne is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. Its current National Secretary is Kathy Jackson
Kathy Jackson
Kathy Jackson is a prominent Australian union leader and the National Secretary of the Health Services Union of Australia...
.
Branch structure
The HSU contains multiple branches in many states. This is fairly unique in Australian trade unions. Branches are sub-divided by occupation. For example, the Victorian Psychologists Association Inc is an organisation covering registered Psychologists in Victoria. The association negotiates terms and conditions of employment for employee psychologists. It along with the Medical Scientists Association of Victoria and the Association of Hospital Pharmacists are component Associations of the Health Services Union of Australia HSUA Victoria No.4 Branch.- HSU National Office
- HSU New South Wales BranchHealth Services Union NSWThe Health Services Union is a specialist health union with over 35,000 members working in all areas of healthcare across New South Wales....
- HSU Queensland Branch
- HSU South Australia Branch
- HSU Tasmania Branch
- HSU Victorian Branches
- No 1 Branch
- No 2 Branch
- No 3 Branch
- No 4 BranchMedical Scientists Association of VictoriaThe Medical Scientists Association of Victoria is a specialist union, which represents the interests of scientists, including dietitians, audiologists, perfusionists, medical physicists, research scientists and genetic counsellors employed in both the public and private sectors in Victoria. The...
: Medical Scientists Association of Victoria - No 5 Branch
- HSU Western Australia
History
The union officially came into existence in 1991 with the amalgamation of two existing unions. But its origins date back much further than that to the early years of the century when organisations of hospitalHospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
employees were first formed in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Over the years the membership of the unions that eventually came together to form the HSUA has been based around a nucleus of hospital staff and psychiatric care staff. But it has gone much further to include ambulance, aged care, community health
Community health
Community health, a field of public health, is a discipline that concerns itself with the study and betterment of the health characteristics of biological communities. While the term community can be broadly defined, community health tends to focus on geographic areas rather than people with shared...
, disability
Disability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
sector, hospital scientists, mental
Mind
The concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
health and drug
Drug abuse
Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
and alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
workers.