The Australian College of Nursing says the landmark industrial decision in New South Wales makes significant findings about the undervaluation of nursing, and could have national implications.
The decision, by a Full Bench of the Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales, recognises that nurses' and midwives' work involves skills that have historically been overlooked in wage-setting on gender grounds, and notes the value of nursing work has changed over the 16-year period under consideration.
The Bench accepted that the intensity and complexity of the work nurses and midwives undertake meets the 'strict test' of an increase in the value of their work over that time, including with increasing patient acuity and dependency, shorter stays, expanding scope of practice, virtual care, and emergency care assessment and treatment pathways.
It found that nurses and midwives have to apply new skills and technologies, and work in new ways; and that they have to work to their full scope of practice and exercise their own clinical judgement.
"Nursing is a highly gendered profession with women making up around 90% of all nurses," said Chief Executive Officer of ACN, Adjunct Professor Zeitz FACN. "Significantly, the Bench found that nursing skills, including complex communication skills, interpersonal skills, and complex problem solving, have never before been evaluated in the exercise of wage setting. It found that because these skills are gendered in nature and have not been formally recognised, they are known as 'invisible skills'."
The decision delivered pay increases over three years of 16% for registered nurses and midwives, 18% for enrolled nurses, and 28% for assistants in nursing, for the nearly 70,000 nurses and midwives employed in NSW.
The decision aligns with the findings of the Fair Work Commission in 2024, that aged care workers' pay has been historically undervalued based on gender assumptions.
The NSW IRC found that there is no reason the FWC's findings would be restricted to nurses in the aged care sector only.
This finding could have implications for the next proceedings in the Fair Work Commission, due in June 2026, which address wage rates for nurses employed under the federal nursing award outside of aged care.
"There remains significant work to be done on pay equity, sick leave and flexible working arrangements. Nonetheless, this decision represents a step forward for the nursing profession," said Adjunct Professor Zeitz. "ACN acknowledges the significant work the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association undertook to advance these issues.
"The Bench acknowledged that under the current settings, it is challenging for parties and the Commission to ensure wages and conditions are set without gender undervaluation. We welcome it querying whether legislative reform or other mechanisms are needed to improve how pay-equity issues are addressed."
