Monday 01 April 2025
Late last week, the ballot for the new Department of Communities (Child Protection) CSA Agreement 2024 closed, with Community and Public Sector Union/Civil Service Association of WA (CPSU/CSA) members in Child Protection and Family Support overwhelmingly voting to accept the offer from Government for a standalone and specific agreement.
This agreement was won off the back of Child Protection and Family Support union members taking significant industrial action over the latter half of 2024, walking out of their offices across Western Australia and culminating in a half-day strike at Parliament House on 17 October 2024.
Over 95% of voting members voted to accept the officer, with new pay and conditions that will see significant pay increases for those in the qualified child safety stream, such as child protection workers, with their starting salary increased from $80,246 in June 2024 to $85,000 backdated to 1 January 2025 and increasing to $89,000 by mid-June 2025. In addition, the new agreement includes condensed increment progression for some unqualified child protection workers, a qualification allowance to support unqualified workers to achieve a recognised qualification and enforceable overtime when caring for children out of hours.
CPSU/CSA Branch Secretary, Melanie Bray, said this member-led achievement is one of the most significant advancements won by members in the Child Protection and Family Support system in decades, and will see long-term improvements for the workforce who support some of Western Australia’s most vulnerable children and families.
“Last year, Child Protection and Family Support members of the CPSU/CSA took historic, months-long action to put pressure on the Government to act on the attraction and retention crisis in the system, which is having significant impacts on workload and outcomes for vulnerable Western Australians.
“In securing this standalone Child Protection-specific agreement, Child Protection union members have secured lasting change for the system. We will soon start to see these changes begin to not only tackle the attraction and retention issues in the system but also better support long-term workforce planning in the Department and address workload issues to improve outcomes for vulnerable children and families in WA.
“I want to thank the CPSU/CSA members in the Child Protection and Family Support system who fought hard for the real transformative change they have achieved from this agreement, and former Child Protection Minister, Sabine Winton, and current Industrial Relations Minister Simone McGurk for their work on securing this agreement. We look forward to working with the new Child Protection Minister, Jessica Stojkovski, to ensure the benefits of this agreement are fully realised for the workforce.”
ENDS
- The Department of Communities (Child Protection) CSA Agreement 2024, as the agreement will be titled, will cover over 2400 workers in the Department of Communities (Child Protection and Family Support).
- An analysis of the offer can be found on the CPSU/CSA’s website.
- The CPSU/CSA covers 44,000 general public sector workers, one-quarter of the WA public sector, including child protection officers, youth custodial officers, park rangers, veterinary scientists and dental technicians.
- Note to Journalists: Please ensure the full acronym, “CPSU/CSA” when mentioning us. “CPSU” is typically used to refer to the Union that covers Commonwealth, ACT and NT public sector workers. We are related but separate organisations.
For more information or to arrange further comment from Branch Secretary Melanie Bray, please contact CPSU/CSA Reception on 08 9323 3800 and ask for the Media and Stakeholder Engagement Officer.
