New Zealand Nurses Organisation recommends nurses take revised offer, voting underway

Monday 2nd July 2018

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation's negotiating team is recommending nurses accept a revised offer from District Health Boards they say meets key issues and equitably values the whole nursing and midwifery team.

The NZNO called off strike action planned for July 5 to allow members to vote on the new offer, hammered out after the first three were rejected since negotiations began last month. A strike notice remains in place for July 12. Online voting on whether to accept the offer opens on Tuesday and closes next Monday.

According to the negotiating team "unlike all previous offers this offer now provides all occupational groups with additional financial recognition over and above the general wage increases."

It provides for additional increases to the top of each scale for all groups covered and states any equity claims would be assessed and implemented by Dec 31, 2019, and includes $38 million new funding to provide immediate relief for staffing and workload issues.

Industrial Services Manager Cee Payne said the offer achieves a number of the priorities identified through members’ feedback on the previous offer: pay, pay equity and safe staffing measures.

“A primary reason we recommend the offer is because it addresses the historical undervaluing of nurses and midwives. We are determined to see nursing in New Zealand become, once again, a rewarding and attractive profession that people wish to join and grow a career in,” Payne said.

Among other things, the offer includes a one-off payment of $2,000 payable to members employed by the DHBs as June 4, 2018.

Meanwhile, other strike action continues to brew. On Monday, Unite Union said its members rejected at a three-year offer from Hoyts Cinema that would have seen all staff who are not on base rates that automatically move with the minimum wage forced back towards the minimum wage.

According to the union, Hoyts cinemas have threatened their workers that if they take even one minute of strike action, they will be locked out of the workplace for almost a month.

Separately, however, it said did reach a deal with Event Cinema that it believes "will bring benefit for Event Cinema workers in New Zealand over the proposed two-year term."

(BusinessDesk)

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