The Health Services Union (HSU) says it is mounting a formal challenge at the Fair Work Commission to have optometrists explicitly recognised under the Health Professionals and Support Services Award.
A HSU media release said the move could fundamentally reshape working conditions across Australia’s corporate-dominated optometry sector.
It said the campaign, launched under the banner Focus on Optometry, marked a significant escalation in a growing movement among employed optometrists who say years of corporate consolidation have eroded their professional autonomy, pushed them toward retail-style sales targets, and left their workplace entitlements lagging far behind those of comparable health professionals.
The HSU said it would lodge an application to vary the Health Professionals and Support Services Award 2020 (HPSS Award) with the Fair Work Commission in June 2026.
If successful, that would see optometrists explicitly listed as health professionals under the award for the first time.
That would unlock minimum pay floors, weekend and public holiday rates, guaranteed breaks, fair rostering provisions, and structured career pathways.
The Fair Work Commission process was expected to take a year or more following lodgement.
