ANF(Vic) History
Introduction
In 1901, the Victorian Trained Nurses’ Association was formed in Melbourne. The Association was the second nursing organisation to be formed in Australia, following the establishment of the Australasian Trained Nurses’ Association in Sydney in 1899. Branches of the ATNA were formed in other Australian States: in Queensland in 1904; in South Australia in 1905; in Western Australia in 1907; and in Tasmania in 1908. In 1924, these branches combined to form the Australian Nursing Federation (ANF). While the VTNA was not a branch of the ATNA, the organisations maintained close links and in 1903 agreed to extend reciprocal rights. In 1904, the organisation received a royal charter, becoming the Royal Victorian Trained Nurses’ Association.
In 1922, the Trained Nurses Guild was registered in Victoria under the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904. The Guild lay dormant and functionless until the mid-1940s, when the ANF entered into mergers discussions with the TNG (whose name change to the Australian United Nurses Association in 1948), seeking to take advantage of the fact that AUNA was registered with the Arbitration Court. However, the groups did not merge, primarily because of concern on the part of the ANF that an industrially conscious ANF would no longer be eligible for membership with the International Council of Nurses. Under the rules of association with the ICN, an organisation that can be considered a trade union and “politically controlled” was not eligible for membership. Instead, branches of AUNA were established in each State, and registered under State arbitration legislation.
Despite both bodies seeking to merge, no solution was reached until 1953, when AUNA applied to change its name to Australian Nursing Federation, Employees Section. With AUNU members forming the nucleus of the State Branches, ANFES thus became the industrial, or “employee section”, of the professional organization. ANFES VB would make submissions to the Victorian Wages Board, whereas the RVCN (in Victoria) would concern itself with nursing education and professional standards. The industrial and professional arms of nursing in Victoria and Australia were consciously kept separate.
In 1970, as the policy of retaining two separate but coordinated nursing organizations in each State became increasingly impractical, the Federal Council of the RANF (‘Royal’ had been added to the title in 1955) voted to amalgamate the two bodies. Every State was in favour of amalgamation, except for the RCVN, which still sought to divide its professional and industrial arms. In May 1975, the issue was put to the vote of Victorian members. Of 3276 votes, only 73 votes were against amalgamation.. The RCVN and the ANFES VB were merged and called the RANF Victorian Branch.
Following the merger, the RANF VB retained a conservative philosophy, avoiding industrial disputes and confrontation with senior hospital management or the government. The election of Barbara Carson as Secretary of the Victorian Branch in 1980 heralded an ideological shift within the union. In 1984, at Carson’s urging, the Branch voted to remove the “no-strike” clause from Branch Rules.
In 1985, Victorian nurses engaged in a five day strike against management’s insistence that nurses engage in “non-nursing duties”. In 1986, after Carson was replaced as Secretary by Irene Bolger, nurses engaged in a 50 day strike, a strike that transformed the industrial consciousness of the Branch and nurses generally, captivated public attention and enshrined a greatly improved career structure for Victorian nurses.
In 1989, Victorian Branch Council chose to dismiss Bolger as Secretary and expel her from the Branch. Belinda Morieson was elected as Secretary, with Lisa Fitzpatrick elected as Branch President. Since that time, the ANF has experienced unprecedented stability and growth in membership, growing from just over 15,000 in 1989 to 65,000 in2012.
This stability and growth was all the more impressive given the conditions placed on nurses in the early 1990s by the Liberal Government who sought to undermine agreed EBA conditions by hiring staff from nursing agencies. In a crucial decision of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission in 2000, Commissioner Blair accepted the ANF’s position that agency staff should only be used for unexpected absences, such as sick leave, and that nurse-patient ratios were essential to the recruitment, retention and well-being of nurses.
The Victorian Branch of the ANF is currently one of the most successful unions operating in Victoria, with a density of more than 60%.
The University of Melbourne