Nursing reports

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 31 January 2023

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) welcomes Hon Dr Ayesha Verrall to the Minister of Health role.

NZNO Chief Executive Paul Goulter said the organisation and its members are looking forward to working with Ms Verrall in addressing years of neglect by successive governments that have resulted in acute staffing shortages and poor working conditions that affect patient safety and threaten the future of the nursing profession in Aotearoa New Zealand.

“We know Ms Verrall is aware of the urgent need to lift the number of trained and qualified nurses and to ensure pay and conditions are equal across the health system.

“Our hope is that, with the Government’s recently stated commitment to health, we can begin to meet nurses’ values and expectations so the right numbers of nurses are attracted into training and onto placements, and that those already in the profession will want to stay.

“In particular we look forward to working with Ms Verrall to increase number of Māori and Pasifika nurses and to building a Tiriti-based health system that is culturally appropriate so all communities receive the care they need.”

However, Paul Goulter said the ongoing pay equity dispute and lack of pay parity, where every nurse everywhere has the same pay and conditions according to their qualifications and experience, are among the biggest challenges the new Minister of Health will face this election year.

“The lack of pay parity results in acute shortages of nurses in various sectors, as they move into the higher paid parts of health or leave the sector entirely.

“This means some sectors, such as Primary Health Care, Māori and iwi, Aged Care etc, cannot find or keep staff which leads to shortages that reduce health services in communities leading to poorer patient outcomes.”

He said he’s sure Ms Verrall knows the enormity of the task ahead and how important it will be for Government to work together with unions and health organisations to bring about meaningful change.

Paul Goulter also acknowledged departing Health Minister Andrew Little.

“I would like to thank Mr Little for the work he did in the health arena and I wish him well with his new portfolios.”

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Media enquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 15 November 2022

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) says it is pleased with Health Minister Andrew Little’s recent announcement that paid placements for nursing students are under active consideration.

NZNO President Anne Daniels says nursing students must do 1100 hours of unpaid placement work during their studies (often at great distance from their homes) and that the hardship resulting from this is a major contributor to the high number of nursing students who drop out.

“We are in the middle of an horrific nursing shortage crisis, and it seems like a no-brainer that we must do everything possible to attract students into nursing and to keep them there.

“NZNO has been suggesting paid placements for some time and we’re frankly surprised it has taken so long even to be considered.”

However, Ms Daniels said this should be just one of several measures introduced to attract and retain nursing students.

“Places in Australia have already introduced free fees for nursing students right up to their third year because they recognise how important it is to build their health workforce right now. We must follow suit.

“In New Zealand we’ve done it for apprentices in response to trade worker shortages, so it’s just mystifying that we’re not considering free training for a profession that literally saves lives and provides care when we are seriously sick.”

She said the Government must move from consideration to action on both these issues quickly.

“We cannot afford to wait around, and we’d like an urgent timeframe announced to put these measures in place.

“New Zealand remains an unattractive option for migrant nurses, and we shouldn’t be relying on them anyway. We must be pulling out every stop in growing our own nursing workforce, especially Māori and Pasifika nurses, and that has to start right now.”

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 29 July 2022

New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) delegates at Whangārei Hospital met with their employer today to demand better winter payment incentives. 

Within 18 hours, more than 80 percent of affected staff were willing to put their name and position forward in support of the letter of demand, which was presented to the employer at the meeting. 

NZNO delegate Rachel Thorn said nursing staff, including health care assistants (HCAs) and other health workers, are worn out from working extra shifts to fill a large number of gaps in the nursing roster. 

“This is having a hugely negative effect on our personal wellbeing and family lives, leading to increased sick leave, burnout and resignations. Despite this, we have been working extra hours to keep the department safe for patients and support our colleagues.

“This has been done out of loyalty to our manager and the department but the good will has run out.”

While nursing staff are being offered an incentive payment, the payment being paid to doctors is eight times higher depending on the timing of the extra shifts. 

“Nurses are feeling really disrespected. This unequitable offer has left us feeling a deep lack of care or consideration from Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand. The doctors we’ve spoken to agree and are shocked by the offer. Payments should increase by the same percentage for nursing staff who are just as vital for patient wellbeing,” Ms Thorn said. 

She said the employer met with doctors’ unions and negotiated much better winter support packages, including agreements to ensure the wellbeing of doctors working additional shifts, but did not negotiate with nurses or NZNO. 

“They just presented the amount to nursing staff without wellbeing support, without enough time to consider the payment and with no negotiation whatsoever. That just confirms to us that we are undervalued and many of us are refusing to take on the stress of extra shifts because it just isn’t worth the personal cost. 

“Unfortunately, our management have failed to deal with the staffing crisis and have effectively passed the burden onto the workers. We knew there was a crisis. We knew the winter surge was coming but it is clear that there was no planning, care or consideration for nurses, HCAs or other health care workers.  

“We expect our employer to step up and commit to resolving these issues, and one way to do that would be better winter incentive payments, as a short-term solution to these acute staff shortages. We should not be asked to sacrifice our families and our own wellbeing if we are not being valued at work.” 

NZNO says it plans to lodge a claim with Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand next week for significant improvement on the Winter Incentive payments (and for consistent penal rates) across the country for nursing staff. 

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

Embargoed until 12.30pm, 20 July 2022

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 20 July 2022

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) says it received more than 2700 responses (in just two days) after inviting members to send a message to the Minister of Health about the nursing/health crisis.

NZNO gave its members the opportunity in response to Health Minister Andrew Little’s persistent assertions that there is no health crisis and that the system as a whole is coping.

NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku said one only has to read the news to see that the system is actually on the brink of collapse, just as many health professionals are saying.

“Ninety-nine percent of responding members said the system was either in crisis (70 percent) or already beyond crisis (29 percent).

“What word we use to describe this situation is probably not important, but the Government’s insistence that this is just a temporary situation caused by covid and a cold winter has made nurses feel unheard and completely undervalued, and that is evident in the messages to the Minister. Many are furious, and many are in tears as they write.”

Some of the messages are lengthy, and NZNO President Anne Daniels said the fact that so many went to such lengths to share their thoughts is significant.

“Decades of poor planning, inadequate funding and outright neglect have led us to a time of absolute crisis in terms of pay, staffing resources and morale across the nursing sector.

“This isn’t a temporary glitch; many are seeing it as the end of the road, with 72 percent of respondents saying they are either seriously thinking of leaving nursing or New Zealand, or that they had already made plans to do so.

“This is not union officials opining in Wellington. These messages are the heartfelt pleas of nurses and other health workers right across the country working in a wide variety of nursing sectors. We hope for their sakes that the Health Minister and the Government will be willing to listen.” 

Interestingly, 95 percent of respondents (not all of whom work in the DHB sector) said honouring the promised back pay to DHB nurses and extending DHB Pay Equity rates to all nurses in New Zealand, regardless of where they practice, was one of the most important things Government could do to help address the nursing/health crisis.

The book of messages, amounting to 330 pages of print, will be anonymised and delivered to the Health Minister today at 12 Noon by a small team of Wellington region NZNO delegates.  Journalists would be welcome to photograph and speak with these members at Parliament at around 12.30pm.

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

Further information: survey stats

Regions

Nurses completing the survey were from all sectors: DHB; Primary Health Care; Aged Care; Private Hospital and Hospice; and Māori and iwi. Responses were received from all 20 DHB regions.

Is there a crisis?

2735 answered the question about whether there was a nursing crisis. No and Maybe were answer choices. 1910 (70 percent) said there was a crisis. A further 29 percent said the situation was already beyond crisis. 

How does the Government denial of a health crisis make you feel? 

Indifferent was an available choice. However, 39 percent said they were angry; 19 percent said they were disillusioned; 41 percent said they felt undervalued. Total = 99 percent.

Are you thinking of leaving nursing?

• Seriously thinking about leaving: 33 percent
• Seriously thinking about taking a nursing job overseas: 27 percent
• Already made plans to leave for good: 5 percent
• Already made plans to nurse overseas: 6 percent
• Determined to battle on: 28 percent. 

In other words, less than a third indicated they wanted to stay in their jobs.

What are the most important things Government could do to help address the nursing/health crisis?

• Honour the promised Pay Equity back pay for DHB nursing staff, and extend those Pay Equity rates to all nursing sectors: 96 percent.
• Provide more nurses: 80 percent
• Prioritise health and safety in workplaces: 70 percent
• Put internationally qualified nurses on the fast track to residency: 64 percent
• Remove financial barriers for nursing students: 60 percent
• Make it cheaper and easier for IQNs already here to gain registration: 53 percent
• Implement te Tiriti across the health system: 34 percent.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 11 May 2022

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) says it will be launching a new campaign tomorrow through which it intends to win the political and resourcing commitments needed to address the nursing shortage crisis permanently – and across the whole health sector.

12 May is International Nurses Day, and NZNO Chief Executive Paul Goulter says that’s the perfect time to launch Maranga Mai! (meaning ‘Rise up!’), an ambitious campaign that calls on every nurses everywhere in New Zealand to rise up together and demand that they be resourced and enabled to do their jobs safely and well.

“So much has been asked of nurses, midwives, health care assistants and kaimahi hauora, and they have delivered like the courageous and professional workforce they are, right across Health. I am not just talking about our DHB-run hospitals.

“But decades of poor planning, inadequate funding and outright neglect have led us to a time of absolute crisis in terms of pay, staffing resources and morale across the nursing sector.

“NZNO intends to go hard. We will be relentless in pursuit of our goals and we will not stop until they are achieved.”

Central to the Maranga Mai! campaign will be the ‘Five Fixes’ which form the charter of demands for the campaign:

1. te Tiriti actualised within and across the health system
2. more nurses across the health sector
3. pay and conditions that meet nurses’ value and expectations
4. more people training to be nurses
5. more Māori and Pasifika nurses.

Paul Goulter says these are what is needed to solve the crisis and that NZNO must be at the table when decisions are made affecting nursing.

“We are more than 55,000 strong and growing. We have a portfolio of solutions and it’s time for Government to listen and involve us so we can work together on fixing this.”

He said a start would be addressing Pay Equity issues for DHB nursing staff without delay and honouring back pay obligations, which would reassure nurses they are valued and go some way towards restoring trust.

“And then those improved rates have to be rolled out across other sectors so people will want to become nurses and want to work where they are needed instead of where the better money is. I’m talking about Aged Care, Primary Care, and especially Māori and iwi providers where nurses earn 30 percent less than their colleagues in other sectors.”

He said a second solution is to implement mandatory staff to patient ratios in every area of health, supported by staff allocation systems and programmes that match nursing resources to patient needs.

“These are the sorts of things it is going to take to guarantee quality of care and that nurses have the time to see that patient needs are met in a compassionate and holistic way.

“Make no mistake about it, people are sicker than they need to be and some are dying because of the nursing crisis and it is time to get serious about addressing this.

“We are deadly serious. Maranga Mai! is not just a campaign for every nurse everywhere. It’s a campaign that will benefit all people in Aotearoa New Zealand because nurses who are well-resourced to do their work without the constant stress of being short-staffed will improve access to good health care and services for all of us.”

Maranga Mai! will be launched at an online forum for members at 11am on Thursday 12 May 2022.

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 3 November 2021

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) wants a programme of COVID-19 booster shots for frontline workers and vulnerable populations put in place as soon as possible.

NZNO Industrial Services Manager Glenda Alexander said the first vaccinations started more than six months ago, and people receiving those early shots may now have waning immunisation.

“They’re still much better protected than the unvaccinated, but recent infections among presumably vaccinated health workers confirms that this is a significant health and safety issue – and one for which we could reduce risk.”

Ms Alexander said NZNO is fully behind the Government’s robust approach to vaccination and wants to see all its members vaccinated.

“But while we’re pursuing a 90 percent or higher rate amongst the general population, which we support, we should also remember our current frontline workers who face COVID-19 in their workplaces every day and whose ongoing immunisation needs also to be protected.

“Frontline workers should be prioritised for the boosters. We also want to see vulnerable populations prioritised and then the general population.”

Ms Alexander said she agreed with Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield who said today that boosters showed a good response in helping lift people's immunity and in reducing hospitalisations and serious illness.

“Waning immunisation after six months is a health and safety issue we can and should address with our frontline workers and vulnerable communities as soon as we possibly can.”

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 30 September 2021

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) welcomes Immigration Minister Hon Kris Faafoi’s one-off residence pathway for working migrants currently living in Aotearoa New Zealand announced today.

An estimated 5000 of these are health and aged care workers, and NZNO Industrial Services Manager Glenda Alexander says this will be good news for them and a step towards retaining our current nursing workforce.

“Many internationally qualified members of NZNO are frustrated with current immigration settings and some are leaving or have left Aotearoa New Zealand as a result.

“Removing uncertainty and providing a clear pathway to permanent residence will help address this exodus at a time when we are facing a crucial shortage of nursing professionals.”

Ms Alexander wrote to Hon Kris Faafoi on behalf of NZNO earlier this month on the very issue of permanent resident status for internationally qualified health care workers. She says that while the announced pathway addresses many of the concerns NZNO raised, more needs to be done about reuniting these workers already here with their families and loved ones still overseas.

“We are pleased that partners and dependents can also be included in applications for permanent residence if they are already living here.

“What we’d like to see is pathways opened up into the country for more internationally qualified nursing staff who want to live here permanently and for the same opportunity to be extended to their families.

“We are critically short of nurses at a time when we need them most, and it is unfair and counter-productive that they be required to work here while isolated and without support from close family.”

However, Ms Alexander said that while immigration was an important short-term solution to having a sustainable nursing workforce here, she agreed with Hon Kris Faafoi that employers must also find ways to build their workforces by attracting and retaining local workers.

“We need to contribute to nursing on a global scale by also encouraging New Zealanders into the nursing workforce. There is a lack of nurses in almost every country so taking health professionals away from other places where they are needed is not a workable solution long-term.

“We look forward to working with Government and employers on large scale nursing recruitment, and on making the nursing profession a more attractive career option in Aotearoa New Zealand.”

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.

Māori nurses are tired of waiting for long-overdue action addressing the 25 percent pay gap between themselves and those working for district health boards.

Kerri Nuku, Kaiwhakahaere of Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa/New Zealand Nurses Organisation, says Māori nurses have been pursuing justice for years but have yet to see any concrete change.

"We’ve been on this kaupapa at least since 2006. We’ve spoken to successive governments and presented evidence time and again to action groups and the Waitangi Tribunal about the systemic racism we endure.

"Yet, despite our efforts, all we’ve been receiving is sympathy. What we really need is action."

Ms Nuku says the Government is more than willing to send Māori nurses to fight on the frontline, but that work is not being recognized and they remain at the back of the line when it comes to being valued.

"We are the ones on the ground, on the frontlines, doing the work to dismantle the systemic barriers facing health for our people. Without us, health inequities would be far worse than they are.

"So when will our contribution be acknowledged? When is the Government going to put Māori nurses first?"

Ms Nuku says Māori nurses are again trying to raise their case at the Waitangi Tribunal Mana Wahine inquiry, but says nurses can’t and shouldn’t have to wait until the end of the inquiry for action to happen.

"We keep opening the same wounds and reliving the same trauma for Crown lawyers to argue against, or at best, for politicians to feel bad about.

"But the injustice we face is real and tangible. We are paid drastically less than our Pākehā counterparts, and kaupapa Māori services are chronically underfunded.

"The Government must uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and address the structural racism in the healthcare system. An urgent and crucial step in this is equal pay for Māori Nurses."

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Media Inquiries: Hugo Robinson, NZNO Assistant Media and Communications Advisor, 021 194 3408 

Māori nurses are tired of waiting for long-overdue action addressing the 25 percent pay gap between themselves and those working for district health boards.

Kerri Nuku, Kaiwhakahaere of Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa/New Zealand Nurses Organisation, says Māori nurses have been pursuing justice for years but have yet to see any concrete change.

"We’ve been on this kaupapa at least since 2006. We’ve spoken to successive governments and presented evidence time and again to action groups and the Waitangi Tribunal about the systemic racism we endure.

"Yet, despite our efforts, all we’ve been receiving is sympathy. What we really need is action."

Ms Nuku says the Government is more than willing to send Māori nurses to fight on the frontline, but that work is not being recognized and they remain at the back of the line when it comes to being valued.

"We are the ones on the ground, on the frontlines, doing the work to dismantle the systemic barriers facing health for our people. Without us, health inequities would be far worse than they are.

"So when will our contribution be acknowledged? When is the Government going to put Māori nurses first?"

Ms Nuku says Māori nurses are again trying to raise their case at the Waitangi Tribunal Mana Wahine inquiry, but says nurses can’t and shouldn’t have to wait until the end of the inquiry for action to happen.

"We keep opening the same wounds and reliving the same trauma for Crown lawyers to argue against, or at best, for politicians to feel bad about.

"But the injustice we face is real and tangible. We are paid drastically less than our Pākehā counterparts, and kaupapa Māori services are chronically underfunded.

"The Government must uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and address the structural racism in the healthcare system. An urgent and crucial step in this is equal pay for Māori Nurses."

Media Inquiries: Hugo Robinson, NZNO Assistant Media and Communications Advisor, 021 194 3408 

New Zealand Nurses Organisation media release, 19 October 2020

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) congratulates the Labour Party on its historic election win and promises to work with the new Government so that progress in health can “keep moving” in Aotearoa New Zealand.

NZNO President Heather Symes said both NZNO and the Government have a lot on their agendas in the coming year.

“We both want the same thing – a first rate health system where people are cared for as best as possible, and in which every health worker is safe and fairly paid.

“The Government has a clear mandate to progress with its agenda and NZNO is keen to work together in good faith on issues such as how improvements in health funding will keep moving forward and how the Government will address the findings of this year’s Health and Disability Commissioner’s report.”

NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku said NZNO has worked steadfastly with the Government on these issues and pledges to continue doing so.

“We also share a commitment to pay parity for nurses and all health workers across the sector, and an end to persistent discrepancies in pay levels between those who work in district health boards and those who work in Primary Care.

“People working for Māori and Iwi health providers often work for 30 percent less than those working in public hospitals, despite having the same qualifications, experience and commitment to their employers and patients. This sort of historic injustice has to end right now.”

Ms Nuku and Ms Symes said that on NZNO’s agenda at present are several high level multi-employer collective agreements (MECAs) and, together with other unions, a pay equity initiative through which nurses will be paid the same as those working in similar but male-dominated professions.

“COVID-19 has ushered us all into a brave new world and that means we have to be brave and face our issues squarely so we do what’s right and just without delay. That’s what keeping moving means,” they say.

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Media inquiries: Rob Zorn, NZNO Media and Communications Advisor: 027 431 2617.