Qld nurses launch bid for new union to ‘break monopoly’

A group of Queensland nurses is challenging the dominance of established unions.

Nurses lodged an application to register a new union with the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission this week. Picture: JUDITH KERR

Queensland’s nursing sector is poised for a major confrontation in the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission as a new “alternative” to the Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union pushes for official registration.

The Queensland Nurses for Choice and Health, a group supported by the Nurses Professional Association of Queensland, lodged its application for registration this week, sparking a battle over representation in the state’s public health system.

The group, which claims 12,061 members, offers free membership to those registered with NPAQ which charges $498 a year compared to the QNMU’s $768, advocating for what it calls “fairer and non-politically motivated” representation and liability coverage for nurses.

The financial stakes in this fight are substantial. If Queensland Nurses for Choice and Health successfully registers, the QNMU stands to lose thousands in annual revenue from membership fees.

Registration will also allow the new union to participate in enterprise bargaining agreements for public sector nurses, negotiate wages and conditions and access hospital sites to engage with members directly.

The QIRC has not yet set a hearing date, and the Red Union Support Hub, which backs the new group, expects opposition from existing unions.

Red Union Support Hub managing director Jack McGuire said he believed the QNMU and other existing unions, viewed the move “as a threat to their monopoly over representation”.

Members of the Queensland Nurses for Choice and Health, from left: QNCH secretary Michelle Southwell; NPAQ president Kara Thomas; NPAQ secretary Ella Leech and QNCH president Andrew Bragg. Picture: Contributed

He argued that the union structure in Queensland, reinforced by amendments to the Industrial Relations Act in 2022 under then-Minister Grace Grace, prevents alternative unions gaining recognition and limits workers’ freedom of choice.

“If this application is successful, it would be a first in Australia – having competition in the registered union space,” Mr McGuire said.

“Right now, to be a registered union, you basically have to be affiliated with the Queensland Council of Unions and many nurses don’t want that.

“The problem is the ‘conveniently belong’ rule which prohibits nurses who are already in an existing union, like the QNMU, from legally establishing or registering their own union.

“Those laws were originally designed for industrial peace between major unions, but now they’re being used to stifle competition.”

The QNMU, traditionally aligned with the Queensland Council of Unions, has historically been the dominant force representing Queensland’s nurses, securing exclusive rights to bargain on their behalf in enterprise agreements.

The QNMU announced the end of its affiliation with the Australian Labor Party in 2010. Picture: QNMU

QNMU assistant secretary Grant Burton, along with previous secretaries, has repeatedly refuted allegations the Queensland Nurses and Midwives’ Union’s is aligned with any political party and does not make political donations.

“The QNMU promotes and defends the industrial, professional, social, political, and democratic interests of our members, and this model is effective, as proven by our long and proud history of securing improvements in the nursing and midwifery professions,” he said.

“Our union has more than 70,000 members and our membership continues to grow, making us the largest in Queensland.”

The legal battle is expected to escalate beyond just union registration.

Mr McGuire said the case could expand into challenges on human rights grounds, arguing that restrictions on union choice breached International Labour Organisation conventions.

For many nurses, including veteran Brisbane nurse Kara Thomas, the push for an alternative union is driven by dissatisfaction with the QNMU’s alleged political affiliations and the cost of membership.

NPAQ president and registered nurse Kara Thomas said registration would allow nurses greater freedom of choice in which union they signed up to. Picture: NPAQ

By joining an alternative union, she believes she will have greater freedom in representation and workplace negotiations, particularly regarding the ongoing state Enterprise Bargaining negotiations.

“When I started nursing 20-odd years ago, there wasn’t any other choice other than the QNMU for your professional indemnity insurance,” she said.

“But they were so obviously politically-aligned so I rang them and said, ‘You’re not using my money to campaign for a political party’.

“I got my own independent insurance to cover my professional indemnity insurance, which every nurse needs to get registered.

“Nurses want this new union registered so they have more of a say in the workplace and will allow us to partake in the state EB12 that’s being negotiated at the moment,” she said.