As a nurse, if you've ever moved between employers, you'd know that your hours contribute to your nursing level. To be paid correctly, your previous hours of work need to be taken into account. For this to happen, you need a record of your previous service. This concept is known as 'recognition of previous service'. All too often, we hear that a nurse has been underpaid after leaving one job for a new job because the new employer was not correctly informed of their hours.
Nursing pay scales operate as incremental ladders, with each step or pay point reflecting a year of experience (or 1,786 hours under the Nurses Award or 1,976 hours under most private sector EBAs). When a nurse changes employers, they are entitled to have their accumulated service recognised so they are paid at the appropriate level. Without this, nurses who have worked for years would restart at entry-level pay every time they changed jobs. The entitlement exists across public and private sectors. If you do not inform your new employer of your previous service within 3 months, this will ordinarily not entitle you to a back payment for the hours you have already worked.
On leaving a job, a nurse should always request a written statement of service from their employer confirming the period of employment, classification, and total hours worked. On commencing new employment, copies of these statements should be provided to the new employer as soon as possible.
A frequently misunderstood area involves breaks in service. Generally, a gap in employment does not erase accumulated service, the total hours worked across a career remain relevant for pay point placement, regardless of how many different employers or how much time has passed between roles. Nurses returning after a career break, parental leave, or a period working outside nursing should not have their prior service discounted for incremental purposes.
If statements are not provided, most employers will default to paying the first increment until evidence is received, with some allowing retrospective adjustment if documentation is provided within a set period (commonly three months). If original statements are unavailable, a statutory declaration is generally acceptable.
If, after you have requested your statement of service from your former employer and they have not provided it, you should submit a member support form so our Industrial Advocates can contact your employer as soon as possible to ensure you are not underpaid.
If you need assistance, NPAA members can submit a Member Support Form through their Member Dashboard, or you can contact our 24/7 Hotline on 1300 263 374.