Premier Peter Malinauskas sidesteps questions over whether government will compensate SA Ambulance Service for revenue lost to industrial action

Industrial action by paramedics ahead of the election cost about $140,000 a day – enough for 40 paramedics or 28 new ambulances – but the Premier won’t say how he’ll recoup the loss.

Premier Peter Malinauskas has sidestepped questions over whether his government will compensate the SA Ambulance Service for more than $4m in lost revenue as a result of union-led industrial action in the lead-up to the state election.

The ambulance service has said a ban on collecting patients’ billing information, making it impossible for the government to recoup costs, had cost about $140,000 a day – money that could have funded the base salaries of about 40 paramedics for a year or 28 new ambulances.

Asked whether the government would step in to cover the revenue lost to the “case card ban”, Mr Malinauskas said “the cost is the cost”.

“Our plan is to invest dramatically in the ambulance service, and we’re already starting that work,” he said on Monday.

Premier Peter Malinauskas speaks at a press conference at Hindmarsh Ambulance Employees Association in early March while Opposition Leader. Picture: Emma Brasier

Ambulance Employees Association (AEA) South Australian secretary Leah Watkins – who spearheaded the union’s powerful election campaign against the Liberal government – has declined requests from The Advertiser to comment on the lost $4m caused by her members’ actions.

Rather than addressing how he would deal with the $4m black hole directly, Mr Malinauskas urged the former Liberal government to reflect on the “appalling state of affairs” that he said had denied ambulance employees a pay rise and forced them to work under more pressure than ever before.

“I think it’s incredibly unfortunate whenever South Australian taxpayers have to foot the bill of incompetence when it comes to industrial negotiations,” he said.

“But does anyone seriously think that our ambulance officers don’t deserve a pay rise for what has been years? Does anyone really think that’s a fair proposition? I don’t.”

Peter Malinauskas will not say whether his government will compensate the SA Ambulance Service for more than $4m in lost revenue. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Naomi Jellicoe

As reported by The Advertiser on Monday, the $4m cost was revealed in a judgment by the SA Employment Tribunal, which ordered that paramedics resume the normal billing process.

The AEA campaigned extensively for the election of a Labor government after Mr Malinauskas pledged to recruit 350 extra paramedics and spend $120m on a new ambulance headquarters.

Before the election, then-treasurer Rob Lucas said the union’s industrial action, which also involved chalking messages on to ambulances, wasted the service’s resources and “(had) the potential to put further strain on the system”.

Health Minister Chris Picton said the union’s actions meant some patients did not receive the usual bill of $1064 for an emergency callout, but services were unaffected.

“The reduction of fees collected from South Australian patients in this period does not impact SA Ambulance’s services – the required expenditure will be funded to ensure emergency care for South Australians in need,” he said.

Mr Picton said paramedics had been forced to work in “extremely stressful and unsafe conditions”.

“The Malinauskas Labor government is committed to working with ambos to help fix the ramping crisis,” he said.

The average annual paramedic wage is $93,000 before overtime and other entitlements, but that figure varies based on role and experience.

A new ambulance costs about $140,000, according to government figures, and a new ambulance fully crewed with two paramedics costs just shy of $1m.

The previous government entered into enterprise bargaining negotiations with the AEA in May 2019 but could not reach an agreement, and the matter was referred to the employment tribunal for arbitration in February.

At the time, Ms Watkins said there had not been one offer of a new agreement or salary increase over the years of negotiations, but Mr Lucas said the union had focused on a political advertising campaign rather than enterprise bargaining.

The 2020-21 SAAS annual report revealed the service incurred more than $253m in “staff benefits expenses” that year, taking into account salaries, superannuation and workers’ compensation. There are about 1200 salaried staff employed.

Nearly $20m was spent on patient transport over the same period, the report said.

The Advertiser sought a response from SAAS, which referred comment to Mr Picton.