Union lodges Fair Work dispute over alleged cuts to staff hours

Private health insurance and aged care provider Bupa is again copping backlash from the sector. This time for alleged cuts to staffing hours in its residential aged care facilities across the country.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) has lodged a dispute with the Fair Work Commission (FWC) claiming Bupa is “changing the rosters for nurses and direct care workers, which includes cuts to rostered staffing hours, shift lengths and shift times, particularly night and weekend shifts.”

ANMF federal secretary Annie Butler said some union members working in Bupa facilities have lost the weekend shifts that they have been regularly working for years and rely on to pay the bills.

“We know that Bupa has been failing to meet the Government’s mandated care minutes in most of its facilities, yet it’s now trying to reduce the rostered hours of frontline staff. It’s totally unacceptable and will put even more pressure on nurses and carers already struggling with excessive workloads,” Ms Butler said.

“Bupa have yet to tell us why they’re cutting weekend shifts or the impact on the care provided to residents.”

Bupa has rejected the unions claims, and said that its care staffing has increased 30 per cent over the last two years and continues to grow in 2025.

“Over the past 18 months we’ve been trialling new carer and nursing shifts and, as a result of seeing benefits to our residents and their families, we are now looking to make our rosters more consistent across our 57 homes,” a Bupa spokesperson said.

“This approach has been developed with feedback from our residents and is part of our approach to continually improve our quality of care. 

“While there will be some changes to individual shifts and/or hours of work that we are working through, there will not be a reduction in overall care staffing.”

The ANMF says staff have a right to know how new workforce models will work and what impacts they may have on the direct care needs of residents.

“It’s appalling that Bupa is pushing ahead with these major cuts to rosters without transparency, proper process or adequately consulting their staff,” Ms Butler said.

“The continuing refusal by Bupa to provide us with the new rosters has resulted in the ANMF lodging a dispute in the FWC, demanding that Bupa come clean on the effect on resident care; which staff are facing cuts to their working hours and why; and how care minutes can still be met under the new rosters.”

“We’re calling on Bupa to stop the introduction of the new rosters and enter into meaningful discussions with the ANMF – for the sake of our members and the people they care for.”

‘Misleading or deceptive conduct’

Just last month, Bupa was fined $35 million by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) after conceding it engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct.

The ACCC states that Bupa admitted to the breaches after telling more than 4000 customers they were not entitled to private health insurance benefits, even though they were entitled to make a claim.

ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb criticised the insurer’s conduct, which is estimated to have affected thousands of members over more than five years.

“Consumers purchase private health insurance to provide peace of mind, certainty of coverage and the ability to choose where and when to undertake their procedures,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

“Bupa’s conduct denied certain members benefits to which they were entitled under their private health insurance policies.”

The ACCC and Bupa will jointly ask the court to order Bupa to pay a penalty of $35m among other orders. It is a matter for the court to determine whether the penalty and other orders are appropriate.

Bupa started compensating affected members, medical providers and hospitals before the start of legal action and has paid $14.3m for more than 4100 affected claims.