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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-09-07 Daily Xml
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Suicide Prevention

The Hon. C. BONAROS (15:18): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Attorney-General, representing the Minister for Health and Wellbeing in another place, and the Attorney in his capacity as industrial relations minister, a question about overworked doctors.

Leave granted.

The Hon. C. BONAROS: Research recently published in the Medical Journal of Australia reveals that female doctors are taking their own lives at 227 per cent the rate of the general population; male doctors died of suicide at 141 per cent the rate of other Australians. The pandemic, overwork and shortage of staff are listed as factors in increasing rates of suicide, according to that research. This is supported by an investigation into a potential landmark wage theft legal claim for doctors, which found that junior doctors in SA are working up to 30 hours unpaid overtime every week, which the lead lawyers warn is 'placing patients and themselves at risk'.

InDaily has reported that a national law firm specialising in group actions, Hayden Stephens and Associates, is mounting a case against SA Health on behalf of the SA Salaried Medical Officers Association for the recovery of unpaid overtime, which if successful could see the government forced to pay out millions of dollars in back pay to doctors. My questions to the minister are:

1. What is the government doing to reduce workplace stress and, hopefully, the number of doctors dying of suicide across the public health system?

2. Are you aware of the legal case being mounted by Hayden Stephens and Associates against SA Health?

3. Have you sought your own advice, in your capacity as industrial relations minister, about the potential financial payout if that claim is successful?

4. How many official claims has SA Health received over the past 12 months from doctors seeking to be compensated for being short-changed?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:20): I thank the honourable member for her question. I will take some elements of that on notice and particularly refer some elements to my colleague in the other place. As the honourable member I think indicated at the start of her answer, it traverses a couple of fields, in industrial relations and in health.

Generally, departments give their own instructions and practices for their workforce in these sorts of claims. Again, I will double-check, but I think that probably workplace claims for someone working in the health system would be the responsibility of the health department and that they give their own instructions, rather than through the industrial relations minister. But I will double-check that for the honourable member.

She also asked about the potential class action. I am aware of it. I think I read a report in InDaily in the last couple of days, so that's the extent of my knowledge, but I certainly will be seeking to understand more about that. In relation to the elements that I don't have information for and which are the responsibility of the Minister for Health, I will refer them to my colleague in another place and bring back a reply.

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