I’m so pleased to be speaking to you following our most successful HSU Conference yet.

Delegates from all over NSW, the ACT and Queensland came together to forge a path forward for HSU members. 

More and more, HSU members are standing up together to demand better – from their colleagues, from employers, and from governments. We’re not content to rest on our laurels. This is our time.

At this year’s Conference, we heard from some truly inspiring delegates and guest speakers about what health and aged care workers need – and how to go out and get it. The future is well and truly ours to claim if we stand strong. 

We’ve already seen this in the extraordinary outcomes that HSU members are bringing home. In this issue, you’ll read about wins in ambulance resourcing and the incredible conclusion of the HSU’s Work Value Case in aged care.

I want to be clear – none of these things came without a fight. HSU members know well that we’re never going to be handed what we want on a platter. But that’s what makes this moment in time such a special one. 

While we’re manoeuvring the pieces into place, one of the largest still remains in play. The NSW State Election is now only 6 months away, and we are taking on this fight to make sure HSU members working in public health and ambulance get what they need. 

At this year’s Conference, delegates endorsed a $1 million campaign in the leadup to the election. We’re going to make sure the NSW public knows precisely how important a strong health system is, and why health workers need their support to make it happen. We’re going to expose the wastage and mismanagement and push for a health system that prioritises staff and patients, not bureaucracy and antiquated awards.

The last few months also saw the launch of another HSU campaign that I consider extremely important – the Walk In My Shoes campaign. We’re rolling out this campaign at worksites everywhere to remind employers that dignity and respect aren’t just nice-sounding words – they’re a right and a basic requirement that everyone should be accorded at work.

It doesn’t matter what you do, it doesn’t matter how junior or senior your role, everyone is equally important and should be treated as such.