Disability workers protested in front of Werribee MP Tim Pallas’s electorate office this week to voice their opposition to the state government’s planned privatising of the public disability services sector.
About 30 disability workers from across the west spent an hour chanting “Disability: not for sale”, “Privatisation, no way” and “Hey, Tim, keep your promise” outside the Watton Street office on Monday morning.
Throughout the protest, a mobile billboard was driven around Werribee’s CBD calling on the state government not to privatise the disability services provided by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Health and Community Services Union state secretary Lloyd Williams said that prior to the 2014 state election Premier Daniel Andrews had pledged not to privatise the market.
Mr Williams said privatisation would result in a 30 per cent reduction in wages and entitlements for workers and a loss of continuity of care for people requiring care.
“We want to let the Treasurer know it’s not acceptable,” he said.
Mr Pallas said that in order to deliver the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the government was “expanding the delivery of disability services in partnership with the non-government sector to meet the needs of Victorians with disability and achieve personalised, flexible support”.
“A transfer [of services] will only occur if the government is satisfied that an organisation meets its key criteria around quality and fairness, and we will ensure that staff are supported to transfer on fair terms.
“The NDIS will see a higher number of participants expected to enter the scheme. Therefore we need to ensure we have additional services and support ready for an additional 27,000 Victorians.
