April 24, 2018
Strike threat about more than wages
Nurses are considering strike action to push their call not just for higher wages but for increased resources into the sector.
Kerri Nuku, the New Zealand Nurses' Organisation kaiwhakahaere, says there has been no serious increase for years, and salaries and wages have not kept pace with inflation.
Government under-investment has also led to unmanageable workloads, and nurses go home stressed because they have not been able to give the quality of care that is expected.
"They know that what helps people to recover quickly is having more intimate one on one time where you can sit down and work with that patient, not be pressured by having to do things and not have the time to be with, so this is also a call that the public deserve better than what they are currently getting," she says.
Ms Nuku says it is hard to address issues like the ageing nursing workforce and the need to recruit more Maori nurses when wage rates are so low.
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