Oceania staff to strike again

18 March

Oceania staff to strike again

Oceania staff will strike on Monday 19 March after failed mediation between unions and employers. Staff at 22 workplaces will strike for four hours on every shift, at 3.00am, 9.00 am and 4.00 pm. New Zealand Nurses Organisation and Service and Food Workers Union members rejected Oceania’s latest pay offer.

Oceania received a Government funding increase of 2.6 percent in June 2011 but is only offering to pass on the increase to workers from February 2012. Another funding increase, to be delivered in June this year, is only being offered on the condition that workers don’t get the increase until February 2013.

“Workers in Aged Care facilities do an amazing job caring for our parents and grandparents. They work extremely hard for little more than the minimum wage”, says joint union spokesperson Alastair Duncan.

“Care workers deserve better and the sooner Oceania recognises that, the better.”

Monday’s strike is the third and will involve care staff from Riverton and Invercargill homes for the first time. Care staff in homes in the Coromandel , Pahiatua, Kapiti coast and Nelson who had not previously taken action have pledged to join further strike action if necessary. Other regions are expected to follow over the coming weeks.

In Auckland several hundred workers will move the picket lines away from Oceania facilities and gather for a ‘picket- nic’ at Nathan Homestead from 9.30 a.m.to 12.30 p.m. Residents, family members and supporters are being invited to the ‘picket-nic’ to show their support for a fair share for those who care.

ENDS

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