Lab staff vote for industrial action

Hospital laboratory workers in Auckland and Northland have voted strongly in favour of industrial action after rejecting their district health boards' offer of a nil wage rise.

Medical Laboratory Workers Union president Stewart Smith said it was seeking rises at around half of health boards that varied by DHB and staff seniority gradings, but the employers had uniformly responded with a "zero" offer.

He indicated some of the rises sought ranged from the cost of living - the consumers' price index rose 2 per cent in the year to December - to more than 5 per cent.

He said the annual base wage for a mid-grade laboratory scientist had risen by 10 per cent - from $50,000, to $55,000 - during the 2 years of the collective agreement that expired in November.

The laboratory vote comes amid rolling industrial action by radiographers - the health workers who take x-rays and several other types of medical images - and related staff after their pay talks with 20 DHBs broke down.

Counties Manukau DHB's chief operating officer Ron Dunham said last night it was coping with the seven-day "go slow" begun by its unionised radiographers yesterday, but the action could cause delays for patients at Middlemore Hospital's emergency department.

"We're asking people to consider going to a general practice first."

Strikes by laboratory staff are extremely disruptive because the majority of hospital patients' diagnoses are made based on laboratory analysis of samples.

The seven-day strike by lab workers at most DHBs nationally and the Blood Service in 2006 caused widespread disruption at hospitals, including the postponement of operations for more than 1000 patients.

The laboratory union has been negotiating with 13 DHBs and the Blood Service for five collective agreements covering around 800 of its 1400 members. Union coverage at hospital labs is high.

The union wants the five regional agreements, including one covering the four Auckland and Northland DHBs and the Blood Service, to replace the previous single agreement settled in 2007 after the strike action.

But the union said the DHBs wanted to retain a single agreement.

Union secretary Bryan Raill, a laboratory employee at Counties Manukau DHB, said members in the northern region and at the Blood Service had voted 95 per cent in favour of rejecting the nil rise offer.

A subsequent vote to take industrial action was carried "in the high 80s". The timing and type of action were yet to be determined.

"We are in the process of deciding what we are going to do."

Members in other regions are expected to vote on the nil wage rise this month.

Mr Smith said the nil wage rise was offered despite good evidence of increased productivity at DHB labs and a shortage of laboratory workers.

Karen Roach, spokeswoman for the DHBs and chief executive of Northland DHB, last night said negotiations were still under way and there had been several days of bargaining since the collective agreement expired in November.

"The union advised it was going to report back to members and would advise DHBs of the result of the report back. DHBs are still waiting to hear from the union on the outcome of these meetings."