The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has issued a draft determination proposing to authorise* a collective bargaining arrangement put forward by the Australian Medical Association (NSW).
AMA NSW proposes to collectively negotiate with NSW Health and public health organisations, including area health services, the terms of contracts for visiting medical officers in the NSW public hospital system.
"The ACCC considers that the proposed collective arrangement may result in public benefit in the form of enhanced representation of VMOs in dealings with NSW Health," ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, said.
"The ACCC recognised that features of the NSW health system limit the potential detriment of the proposed arrangement. Importantly, negotiations about rates of remuneration can only take place with NSW Health and state legislation significantly constrains the ability of public health organisations to negotiate contracts terms which are inconsistent with those centrally determined by NSW Health. This distinguishes AMA NSW's proposal from previous collective bargaining arrangements in the health sector to which the ACCC has objected."
"The voluntary nature of the proposed arrangement also mitigates against the potential for anti competitive impact. NSW Health remains free to continue to establish standard terms and conditions for VMO contracts with or without input from AMA NSW."
The ACCC's draft determination will be available from the ACCC website.
The ACCC is seeking submission from interested parties in relation to its draft determination. Submissions can be made to: The General Manager, Adjudication Branch, Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, GPO Box 3131, Canberra, ACT, 2601. Submissions can also be lodged by fax on (02) 6243 1121 or by email to: adjudication@accc.gov.au.
*Authorisation provides protection from court action for conduct or arrangements that might otherwise raise concerns under the competition provisions of the Trade Practices Act 1974. Authorisation is granted where the ACCC is satisfied that the benefit to the public from the conduct outweighs any public detriment. A party to whom authorisation had been granted may also apply to the ACCC for a minor variation of that authorisation.
