Provider pays bonus to all aged care staff

A Woy Woy aged care provider has decided to pay all its staff on the same basis, irrespective of their eligibility for the Aged Care Workforce Retention Bonus.
BlueWave Living will pay laundry, cleaners, maintenance, reception and administration staff the bonus despite them not being eligible for the Federal Government grant.
Chief executive Mr Matt Downie said the Federal Government formula was “a very prescriptive model, which excluded a significant portion of our workforce”.
He said Bluewave had a “wonderful team of staff continuing to work through these challenging times”.
“We work together as a team to achieve wonderful outcomes, and this should be rightly recognized.
“BlueWave will ensure all staff who are employed by BlueWave will receive this bonus, at our cost.”
He told staff: “Hopefully this bonus will go some small way to helping all who work for us and your families.
“We very much appreciate all your efforts in keeping our elders safe.”

SOURCE:
Media release, 24 Jul 2020
Kylie Scott, BlueWave Living