Nurses stage 24-hour strike over safe staffing and pay dispute

Summarised by Centrist

More than 36,000 nurses, midwives, and healthcare assistants staged a nationwide 24-hour strike, protesting chronic understaffing and demanding safe staffing levels alongside fair pay. 

The strike follows deadlocked contract negotiations with Te Whatu Ora and is expected to delay around 4,300 specialist appointments and procedures.

Union delegates say the strike is not just about wages but a fight to ensure hospitals have enough staff to provide safe, compassionate care. 

Waikato Hospital emergency nurse Tracy Chisholm described patients waiting up to 14 hours in emergency and being neglected due to severe staff shortages.

Health NZ says senior nurses’ pay has risen nearly 74% since 2011, mostly from a pay equity claim correcting (alleged) past discrimination. The union seeks cost-of-living pay increases, emphasising that safe staffing guarantees are the core issue.

The government has offered a 2% pay rise this year and 1% next, with a lump sum payment, but the union argues extending the agreement’s term would further dilute pay value. Official data show half of day shifts in 16 districts last year were understaffed, with safe staffing commitments removed from the collective agreement.

Nursing graduates face uncertainty, with fewer hospital jobs available, prompting fears that many may leave the sector or move overseas. Despite the strike, hospitals remain open, though many clinics are closed temporarily.

Nurses say the strike calls for urgent action to fix a health system under pressure and ensure quality care for all New Zealanders.

Read more over at The NZ Herald

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