Anne Daniels, President
NZNO Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa

This week NZNO Te Whatu Ora delegates and members have been attending paid union meetings (previously known as ‘stop works’) around the country. What is our why?

We have fought and won Pay Equity for Te Whatu Ora members, but we need to maintain that equity in the context of continued high cost of living, high rents, interest rates and more. Fair pay is a strong incentive for successful recruitment and retention. And we all know we need more nurses/midwives/health care assistants so we can deliver safe and excellent care to those who need it, where and when they need it.

The research is unequivocal. Fewer nurses result in avoidable harm for our patients because we are the safety net of the health system. We are there, 24/7, but these days we are not there when we should be. Filling budgeted vacancies does not meet patient need.

It is our right to work in a safe environment with enough skilled, knowledgeable, and experienced nurses to provide care the way it should be done. It is the employer’s responsibility under the Health and Safety in Employment Act to provide a safe work environment and that means more nurses/midwives/healthcare assistants.

In May this year, two thirds of surveyed Te Whatu Ora staff reported they don’t have the time, people, budget, or facilities to do their job well. This state-of-affairs has been going on for far too long.

More than 20 years have passed since NZNO started campaigning for nurse patient ratios. On the back of members calls for safe staffing, an NZNO remit proposed by myself and co-written with Grant Brookes to explore how we could get legislated nurse patient ratios over the line starting 2020, is now seeing fruition through our Maranga Mai! campaign.

It is envisaged that a fit for purpose CCDM (Care Capacity Demand Management), designed to match the demand safely and consistently for services and care required by patients with the resources required to provide that care, will be the tool that is enforced under the legislation. This is necessary as DHBs and now Te Whatu Ora have failed to act on their legislated and employer responsibilities to keep us safe at work.

As we speak, the right to strike under the Health and Safety in Employments Act is being contested in court. And our patients suffer. We need to make Te Whatu Ora, and every nurse/midwife/health care assistant/kaiāwhina employer, live up to their own set of rules and policies. This campaign will make that happen.

But it is not just about us. These issues affect Te Whatu Ora members, Primary Health Care, Aged Care and the funded sectors. These areas still have not achieved full equity in pay or conditions.

Maranga Mai! asks us all to rise up together. A show of strength and numbers is pivotal to making this happen. Successful campaigns use the power of the people to keep the pressure on until we win.

Every NZNO member, everywhere must achieve Pay Equity and equitable conditions of work. We need to demonstrate that we are prepared, willing, and able to take action to advocate and influence the Government and employers to achieve these goals. That means action by us all, backing each other up by turning up and doing the mahi. Every NZNO member has a responsibility to stand up and act in solidarity wherever the action is taking place.

As Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers sang…

Well, I know what’s right, I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin’ me around
But I stand my ground and I won’t back down.