| Publication: | The Sydney Morning Herald |
|---|---|
| Date: | 24 March 2009 |
THE Government-owned Medibank Private health fund says it is moving 140 staff into part-time work as an efficiency measure triggered partly by the collapse in investment income that has hit private health funds.
The Community and Public Sector Union said yesterday the cut would mean shorter working hours for about 250 retail staff, but this was denied by Medibank.
The union's deputy secretary, Nadine Flood, said the changes would "result in significant cuts to take-home pay".
Medibank, Australia's biggest fund, has just announced a 5.7 per cent rise in premiums approved by the Government, and is also buoyed by about $1 billion in tax rebates paid to its members.
A Medibank spokesman, Craig Bosworth, said the fund was proposing to transfer 140 full-time equivalent positions into 135 part-time jobs, to better reflect the demand for services on its retail staff, who tend to be busiest at lunch times.
The staffing shake-up also reflected improved technology for claims management and greater use of the internet by customers.
Efficiencies were also necessary because of the big drop in revenue from the fund's investments which in previous good years have added significantly to its bottom line.
Mr Bosworth said the changes would not necessarily involve "significant" cuts to affected staff's incomes.
He said Medibank had consulted with workers about the changes.
But Ms Flood said Medibank's plan "forces full-time staff to work reduced hours or face the sack, which is a tough choice in the current economic climate".
The staff squeeze comes amid fears that the changes to the Medicare levy surcharge threshold will erode health fund memberships.
Ms Flood said that while the private health insurance sector faced serious challenges with the slowing economy, management should respect choices of employees, consider the financial impact on workers and delay the staffing changes.
"Medibank have just put fees up and are seeking to improve an already dominant position in terms of market share by purchasing smaller competitors."
