August 15, 2013
Māori nurses missing out
The Nurses Organisation says it’s time to bring the pay of nurses working for Māori heath providers up to the levels of their colleagues in hospitals and primary healthcare providers.
Kerri Nuku, the chair of the NZNO’s Māori arm, says a major topic at the rūnanga’s annual hui at the weekend was the progress of its Te Rau Kokiri pay equity campaign.
She says the same levels of skills are expected as in district health boards.
"Some would say that working in Māori and iwi providers is a lot more intense because you are actually going into people’s homes, you are connecting with the whānau. It’s just not fair that there is such a huge difference in pay rate between same-skilled positions," Ms Nuku says.
The rūnanga also heard from student nurses that they needed support from more experienced nurses to get through their training, so a robust tuakana teina model is being developed.
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