On The Way To Fair Pay

On The Way To Fair Pay

Nurses To Petition Government

Presentation Of Nurses’ Petition: 1.15pm at Parliament Steps

Members of the New Zealand Nurses Organisation will deliver 21 petitions signed by nearly 9,000 nurses to Parliament today.

The Associate Minister of Health and Minister of Women’s Affairs, Ruth Dyson will accept the petition.

The petitioners, from the 21 DHBs, are calling on government to provide funding in Budget 2004 for DHBs, specifically targeted to nurses’ pay.

“There is no reason for nurses to wait any longer to be paid what they are worth,” said New Zealand Nurses Organisation CEO Geoff Annals today.

“The government has a commitment to pay equity and importantly, the government has a large surplus and can afford it. It is time to end the historic underpayment of nurses.”

The message nurses will take to parliament today is: “ON THE WAY TO FAIR PAY” and “FAIR PAY BECAUSE WE’RE WORTH IT”.

NZNO is running a major public campaign to achieve Fair Pay for nurses. At the same time, in pay negotiations with DHBs NZNO has been seeking parity across New Zealand.

“The goal for NZNO members for 2003 has been to standardise pay rates in DHBs, through collective agreement negotiations,” said Geoff Annals. “The goal for 2004 is a significant national Fair Pay settlement across all DHBs.”

He said despite nursing shortages and the long hard hours nurses work, often managing life and death situations, nurses were paid thousands and thousands of dollars less than a range of professionals with comparable experience and skills.

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