As Nursing Review went to press votes were being counted to see whether nurses and other district health board staff backed a two per cent pay offer.
A multi-union deal covering about 75 per cent of DHB employees – just over 56,000 people – went out to ratification in March on an 'all in or all out' basis.
The National Terms of Settlement (NtoS) deal would see a roll-over of existing multi-employer agreements (MECAs) terms and agreements until the end of the year and a two per cent pay increase in 2011.
NZNO and the Public Service Association joined in with the Service and Food Workers Union in the combined talks with boards, hoping to get the best deal for their staff in the tough funding climate for boards.
Glenda Alexander, industrial advisor for the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZN0) said the reason why any money for a pay increase was found at all was attributed to the 'economies of scale' effect of the alternative bargaining approach.
Karen Roach, chief executive of Northland DHB and spokesperson for the 21 DHBs, said the health sector could benefit greatly from the NToS agreement.
“Employment relations bargaining is often a difficult time in the health sector and this landmark agreement could provide the opportunity for that energy and attention to be put into improving our health system,” she says.
Ashok Shankar, Public Service Association organiser, said meetings were going well with its nurse members and there appeared to be “quite a bit of recognition” of the financial pressure boards were under.
Alexander said low turnouts at its ratification meetings reflected overall low staffing numbers and difficulties in getting staff released. She said this also reflected the restructuring and reviews under way, driven by the government's requirement for boards to "live within their means".
Shankar also said members' jobs in some areas were under pressure, particularly in education and quality management areas.
Alexander said the 'unusual' nine month rollover of existing conditions was designed to give boards “breathing space” before having to apply the pay increase in 2011.
The deal, if ratified by members of all three unions, will cover nurses, midwives, allied, technical and clerical staff, orderlies, kitchen staff and cleaners. The wage and salary bill for these staff is $2.1 billion, or 60 per cent of the total DHB spend on wages and salaries.
The initiative was developed under the umbrella of the Health Sector Relationship Agreement (HSRA) a tripartite body established between DHB, CTU unions and the Ministry of Health in 2008 to promote better ways of working.
stop press: Nursing and service unions ratify two per cent pay deal. Details next edition.
