Aged-care workers preparing to strike

Workers earning close to minimum wage at the country's largest rest home operator are preparing for a series of strikes, saying the company does not care about them.

About 1500 care staff of Oceania Group, from Auckland to Dunedin, have announced strike action beginning on March 1, affecting 20 of the company's 59 retirement villages.

Nurses, health care assistants and support staff, some of whom earn as little as $13.61, plan to picket outside the rest homes at 8.30am for two hours, campaigning for a wage increase which they say reflects the rise in the cost of living.

The strikers are members of the NZ Nurses Organisation and the Service and Food Workers Union.

Combined union spokesperson Alastair Duncan said the strike was the last resort after eight months of bargaining.

By failing to offer care staff a reasonable cost of living increase, Oceania has attacked the carers who go out of their way every day to care for and support residents.

Oceania's parent company, Retirement Care NZ, is controlled by Macquarie Global Infrastructure Fund II, an equity firm based in Australia.

Management is more focused [on] making a return to overseas shareholders than it is in running what could be a great rest home chain caring for 3000 New Zealanders," Mr Duncan said.

Workers were seeking a 3.5 per cent pay rise but the union says Oceania has offered a 1 per cent increase with no backdating. They also wanted to slash workers' overtime rates, the union said.

Oceania needs to be fair to those who care, said Mr Duncan.

Labour's spokesperson for labour issues Darien Fenton described the offer as "pitiful".

"Things have become desperate when some of our lowest paid workers caring for older New Zealanders are forced to strike to get a fair pay increase.

Caregivers do magnificent work caring for the older members of our families, yet they are underpaid and undervalued."