Multi-Employer Enterprise Agreement and Industrial Action (FAQs)
Published on 19 October 2026
Hume City Council, seven other councils and four unions are currently joined together in a multi-employer bargaining process. This means that instead of the traditional single enterprise bargaining where each council negotiates separately with staff and unions, eight councils are bargaining together with the unions to create a ‘shared’ multi-employer agreement that will cover employees at all eight councils.
The Fair Work Commission has authorised the multi-employer bargaining process to run for 12 months, ending on 22 December 2026.
Since bargaining began in March this year, we have made lots of progress towards a new shared agreement, with finalising wage increases one of the last significant matters for resolution.
FAQs
THE MULTI-EMPLOYER BARGAINING PROCESS
What is multi-employer bargaining?
Multi-employer bargaining is a process where multiple employers, identified as having a common interest, bargain together with one or more unions for a multi-enterprise agreement (MEA) that will cover all enterprises involved, rather than having separate agreements at each enterprise.
An MEA is a form of enterprise agreement that covers more than one employer (in this case more than one council) and their employees.
How is multi-employer bargaining different to single enterprise bargaining?
This multi-employer bargaining process is much more complex than negotiating single enterprise agreements. It means trying to bring together eight separate agreements and requires the eight Councils to work together as a collective group. The process also includes four unions, so there are 12 parties who have to agree on a final proposed agreement before it can be put to staff for a vote.
Council is working with seven other councils to make sure that the agreement is fair and sustainable for all of our employees and communities.
A multi-enterprise agreement can be drafted to provide a solid foundation of shared conditions across multiple councils, bringing consistency and clarity for staff on items such as leave entitlements, types of employment, union delegates rights and more.
Why is bargaining changing at Hume City Council?
In March 2025, the Australian Services Union (ASU) applied to the Fair Work Commission for an authorisation to require a group of metropolitan councils and the unions to bargain together for a multi-enterprise agreement.
As a part of the process, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) directed an independent staff ballot at several councils, including Hume City Council to determine employee support for multi-employer bargaining. At Hume City Council a majority of staff 67.7% voted in favour of multi-employer bargaining. The CEO respected this outcome and consented to being part of the MEA process.
On 22 December 2025, the Fair Work Commission authorised Hume City Council and seven other councils to be joined in a multi-employer bargaining process.
How many Councils are involved?
There are currently eight metropolitan councils covered by the authorisation: Greater Dandenong, Darebin, Hobsons Bay, Hume, Maribyrnong, Melbourne, Merri-bek and Yarra.
The unions involved in the bargaining process are the Australian Services Union (ASU), Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF), Australian Education Union (AEU), and Professionals Australia.
What will be in the multi-enterprise agreement?
The multi-enterprise agreement will be made up of three sections:
- Part A – Shared, or ‘core’ provisions that apply to all Councils, which includes arrangements setting up the MEA (who is covered, when it starts), common provisions relating to the employment relationship, salary and wage-related matters, paid and unpaid leave entitlements, and consultation and union recognition;
- Part B – common provisions that apply to specific work functions, such as maternal and child health nurses;
- Part C – eight schedules that have local arrangements specific to each Council.
What does ‘core’ mean?
Each of the eight councils previously had their own single-enterprise agreement, with terms and conditions that have been negotiated over many years. Moving to one multi-enterprise agreement will see a set of shared, or ‘core’, items agreed to that are the same across each of the eight councils, with other items in schedules to the agreement that are individual to each council.
What if the Councils and unions cannot reach an agreement? Could bargaining be extended past 22 December – the end of the current authorisation?
The parties involved (eight Councils and four unions) in multi-enterprise bargaining have a period of up to 12 months to agree on a final draft agreement (i.e. until 22 December 2026). After that, there is the option for one of the parties to apply to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for the authorisation to be extended by a further period of time. There are limited examples of how this works currently, as the legislation on multi-employer agreements is relatively new, but the FWC may approve an application if it is satisfied there is a reasonable chance that an agreement will be made if the extension is granted.
COUNCILS’ PAY OFFER
What are the details of the Councils' pay offer?
On 13 October 2026, the eight Councils have jointly proposed a pay offer that provides 5x wage increases linked to the rate cap throughout the life of the four-year agreement:
- An upfront transition payment of $1,200 for full-time employees, pro-rata for part-time employees (paid on commencement of the new agreement).
- A 2.75% wage increase from 1 January 2027, equal to the full 2026-27 rate cap.
- A further wage increase from 1 July 2027, equal to the full 2027-28 rate cap.
- Additional wage increases equal to the full annual rate cap from July 2028, July 2029 and July 2030.
Why is the pay offer tied to the rate cap?
The rate cap is the single biggest constraint on every Council budget in Victoria, because it caps a Council's rate revenue, its largest income stream. This makes operating within the confines of the rate cap necessary for Councils to remain financially sustainable for our community and our employees.
This pay offer is what we can offer within the constraints of rate-capping and the financial circumstances of all eight Councils.
When will we know what the rate cap is for the other years of the agreement?
The State Government usually announces the rate cap in December for the following financial year. For example, the rate cap for 2026-27 was announced in December 2025. This means employees should have certainty about their pay increase six months in advance.
PROTECTED INDUSTRIAL ACTION
What is protected industrial action?
Industrial action can take several forms. For employees, this can include going on strike (refusing to attend or perform work) or imposing work bans (refusing to perform all their normal duties) or doing things to promote a campaign (such as putting up posters or wearing t-shirts). Under the Fair Work Act, industrial action for employees is defined as:
- employees performing work in a manner different to how it is normally performed
- employees adopting a work practice that restricts, limits or delays the performance of work
- a ban, limitation or restriction by employees on performing, accepting or offering to work
- employees failing or refusing to attend for work or perform any work.
Do staff members who take protected industrial action get paid? What about partial work bans?
Under the Fair Work Act, Council cannot pay members who participate in a protected industrial action work stoppage (strike). This is where an employee stops work completely for a period of time. Employees who participate in a protected industrial action strike also cannot receive any pay for this day.
Also, under the Fair Work Act, when an employee takes protected industrial action in the form of a partial work ban, their pay may be adjusted to reflect the time or proportion of work not performed. For example, if an employee is participating in protected industrial action and they are not completing 20% of their usual work, then employers can reduce their pay by 20%. This is in line with industrial and legal requirements, as well as entitlements under the Fair Work Act.
What happens to our community services during industrial action?
We would prefer to focus on continuing negotiations with the unions towards a shared multi-employer agreement, however during industrial action we do everything we can to ensure our vital community services continue to run.
Multi-employer bargaining timeline