FAIR Work Australia has been called on to investigate staff shortages at West Wyalong's Waratah Village.
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The NSW Nurses Association (NSWNA) met with Fair Work Australia in Sydney yesterday to ask the independent body to step in and quiz the aged-care facility's owners on a number of redundancies and working conditions.
Waratah Village was owned and operated by Bland Shire Council until January 31, when council handed the reins over to the Royal Freemasons Benevolent Institution (RFBI).
The NSWNA says since the takeover, nine registered nurses have been made redundant and up to six enrolled nurses have resigned as a result.
The RFBI was unable to confirm, deny or comment on the situation yesterday.
The facility houses a 20-bed nursing home or high-care area, a 10-bed dementia unit and a 43-bed low-care hostel.
The NSWNA says the two registered nurses left are co-managing Waratah Village and neither are rostered to work outside 8.30am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
The village previously provided 24-hour registered nurse coverage.
NSWNA general secretary Brett Holmes says the two registered nurses do not have the time to provide direct resident care or supervise the care service employees.
"In fact, it would be quite unfair to expect them to do very much direct care and supervision," Mr Holmes said.
"The workload would be horrendous.
"That means Waratah Village ... has virtually no licensed nurses providing resident care or direct supervision of the (care service employees).
"This is not appropriate and further evidence of the breakdown in aged-care regulation since the Howard government virtually deregulated the sector in 1996."
Mr Holmes says the RFBI is breaching the state government's Public Health Act 1991 (NSW) by failing to have a registered nurse on duty at all times in the nursing home.
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