NZNO Calls For Cool Heads as DHBs Break Down Negotiations Over Nurses ’ and Midwives’ Pay
NZNO has responded to the breaking down of pay negotiations by the country’s 21 DHBs today, saying it believes there is
still time to avoid national industrial action in public hospitals.
DHBs have presented nurses and midwives with a “take it or leave it” offer and said they are not prepared to negotiate
improvements to it.
The offer was reported back to New Zealand Nurses Organisation members at stop work meetings over the last week. Members
instructed their negotiating team to improve it or to give notice of industrial action.
Speaking on behalf of NZNO, Laila Harré said that nurses and midwives have presented a moderate claim in the
negotiations which would not even achieve parity with teachers and police but was an amount that they believed was
“fair”.
“The DHBs’ behaviour is very disappointing,” she said.
“They seem to have told the government that they would be able to talk nurses and midwives into accepting this deal with
the money government has provided so far. They were wrong. We have asked them to take the issue up with central
government. They are refusing to do so. We all remember well where this sort of carry on led in 2002 with secondary
teachers, and we don’t want to go there.”
Laila Harré said it was time that cool heads prevailed and the DHBs started to listen to what nurses are saying.
“We will not issue notice of industrial action until every possible alternative to a strike has been tried,” she said.
“We have clearly established that nurses and midwives are very significantly underpaid compared to many state sector
occupations, notably teachers and police. The DHB offer falls well short of closing this gap. The single biggest group
of nurses covered by this agreement have 19 or more years experience. The DHBs have offered them average pay of $60,950
including penal payments for shift work. By the time this money is paid in 2006, it will be nearly $13,000 less per year
than a similarly experienced police constable. Altogether, 74% or three-quarters of nurses and midwives are being
offered less total pay than police constables. Three-quarters of nurses are being offered less than secondary teachers
and two-thirds would still get less than primary teachers.
Laila Harré emphasised that even NZNO’s claim would not mean parity with teachers and police for most nurses and
midwives.
“Our claim is aimed at the need to keep our nurses nursing – and nursing in New Zealand , not overseas. That’s why we
have concentrated especially on those most likely to leave the profession, the younger nurses with between 4 and 10
years of nursing experience. New Zealand is already three times more dependent on overseas trained nurses than anywhere
else in the world.
“We have made it clear to the DHBs that nurses simply won’t agree to be locked into a three year agreement that does not
do enough to keep them here and to keep them nursing. Our claims have been signalled for 18 months. They are not
extravagant and nurses and midwives are far too organised and well-informed for the DHBs to get away with fudging
fairness.”
ENDS