Rotorua New Zealand Nurses Organisation members marched from Rotorua Hospital to the CBD as they started their 24-hour strike today. Photo / Megan Wilson
Rotorua New Zealand Nurses Organisation members marched from Rotorua Hospital to the CBD as they started their 24-hour strike today. Photo / Megan Wilson
The rain did not stop Rotorua Hospital nurses, midwives, and healthcare assistants from marching through the CBD as they called for more resources and safe staffing.
About 800 Rotorua New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) union members were among 37,000 nationally who began their 24-hour strike at 9am today.
Memberswho joined the march walked from Rotorua Hospital to The Arts Village, donning rain jackets, umbrellas, and signs saying, “staffing ratios save lives” and “we need nurses”.
New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) delegate and Rotorua Hospital Emergency Department nurse Linda Logan told the Rotorua Daily Post nursing was her “calling”, but in the past few years she found “we haven’t been getting the right amount of nurses to patients”.
“We’re struggling with the fact that we’ve got very, very sick, complex patients coming into ED and the wards and we haven’t got enough nurses to look after them safely.
“I just feel ... we can’t give the care we want to because we haven’t got the resources.”
New Zealand Nurses Organisation delegates and Rotorua Hospital nurses from left to right: Linda Logan, Pam Kirk, Donna Warena, and Brenda Pearce. Photo / Megan Wilson
NZNO delegate and paediatric nurse Pam Kirk said it was “morally hard” to walk off the job.
“But we face those moral decisions just about every shift ... you know you’re not providing the care that you should in a timely manner.”
“I would like nursing to be a viable profession again ... women can work anywhere now. It wasn’t the case when I was young.
“I don’t blame anyone going overseas to further their careers and work in other systems but we’re just training our doctors and nurses for overseas workforces.”
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation strike in Rotorua on Wednesday. Photo / Megan Wilson
NZNO delegate and special care baby unit nurse Donna Warena said the unit was “often short-staffed”.
“We borrow from other areas, which isn’t ideal because our area specifically is a specialised area.”
Warena – who had worked at Rotorua Hospital for 36 years – said nurses were often requested to work on their days off due to short staffing.
Health NZ referred to earlier statements when approached for a response to the nurses’ comments.
A Health NZ statement on Monday said it valued nurses’ hard work and dedication and it was “disappointed” the strike went ahead when there was a “fair offer on the table”.
Health NZ said it was “completely committed to safe staffing”.
“For us, safe staffing in a busy hospital environment includes the skills mix of the staff, the way care is provided, strong clinical judgment, flexibility and thoughtful decision-making from our experienced leaders on the frontline.”
Health NZ said it took responsibility for operational and patient safety decisions “seriously as we are accountable for the safety of patients who access our services”.
“We maintain our commitment to working with the union on our approach to ensuring high-quality health outcomes for patients and a good working environment for our nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants.”
The offer rejected by the union meant a new graduate nurse on $75,773 would gain another $8337 (or 11%) pay increase by the end of June 2026, once step progression was included.
A registered nurse on the highest step with a base salary of $106,739 would have their pay increase by $3224 to $109,963 over the same period.
The average salary for senior and registered nurses, including overtime, PDRP allowance, and penal rates, was $125,662, it said.
About 4300 planned procedures and specialist appointments nationally were postponed due to the strike.
