Public Psychiatrists To Receive Hard-Won Pay Rise

The New South Wales Industrial Relations Commission has awarded psychiatrists a 20 per cent pay increase, after the sector was thrown into turmoil earlier this year.

On Friday morning, Justice David Chin ruled that an acute shortage of psychiatrists was “causing a deterioration in the quality of mental health care delivered in NSW and a deterioration in the conditions” of specialist public psychiatrists, and that the comparatively low pay of NSW psychiatrists was contributing to the shortage.

It comes after more than 200 of the state’s 295 public health psychiatrists threatened to resign in January, refusing to continue working in a broken system, with the doctors’ union, the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation, arguing that the special levy was required to prevent a state-wide “collapse” of psychiatric care.

Chin said the Commission was able to justify a payment of a temporary allowance of 20 per cent for up to 12 months to attract and keep staff, including the the 10 per cent abnormal duties allowance they have been paid since 3 February

However, Chin said the Commission doesn’t intend to grant the other claims ASMOF brought in the case.

Psychiatrists issue “call to action”

Speaking to media outside of the court, ASMOF councillor, Dr Ian Korbel, said more investment was needed within the system, highlighting community mental health and housing for those with mental illness.

“None of us thought we’d be here a year ago,” he said. “We thought, perhaps naively, that we’d be able to negotiate with the government, that we’d be able to sit at the table and we’d be able to point out what was found today in court, which is that the public health sector is struggling in the psychiatric area.

“We’ve seen that our patients are not getting the care that they need, and we need investment. That’s what we vitally need.”

Minister for Mental Health Rose Jackson said the government welcomed the decision as a “positive resolution” to the matter, and that the government was “already leaning into ways to bring [psychiatrists] back in”.

“After 12 years of wage suppression, we can now deliver a meaningful wage increase to our Staff Specialist Psychiatrists in recognition of the crucial work they do,” she said. 

“Our psychiatrists are a valued part of the health system and we now look forward to working with them to strengthen mental health care across our state..