Senior Doctors Vote For National Collective Agmnt.

MEDIA STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE,
FRIDAY 8 NOVEMBER 2002

“Senior Doctors Vote For National Collective Agreement Negotiations”

“Senior doctors have voted decisively in favour of a strategy to negotiate a national collective agreement covering district health boards,” said Mr Ian Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, today. Mr Powell was commenting on the decision made at the Association’s Annual Conference today.

“We believe that achieving a national collective agreement will assist New Zealand’s ability to recruit and retain senior doctors and will also assist better workforce development and planning. This decision recognises the greater, fairness, flexibility and opportunities provided by the Employment Relations Act.”

“This is an excellent opportunity to address many anomalies and deficiencies in employment conditions in order to better recruit and retain senior doctors in the public system and provide better quality care for patients.”

“This strategy is strongly recommended by national representatives of senior doctors after extensive discussion and debate during the two-day conference. But the final decision will be left with senior doctors in each district health board through local ballots.”

“There will be an initial transition process when we commence negotiations early next year with different expiry dates in the current collective agreements among the 21 district health boards as well as several unresolved negotiations.”

“We hope that health bosses will respond constructively to this initiative that offers positive gains for them as well as senior doctors and patients,” concluded Mr Powell.

Ian Powell

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

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