KEY POINTS:
Hundreds of hospital cleaners and food workers are striking after waiting nine months for a promised wage increase that has not materialised.
The strike will last 24 hours and involves 800 workers in 18 hospitals around the country.
Union coordinator Shane Vugler said the workers' employer Spotless had agreed to a base wage rate of $14.25 but after waiting nine months, they have still not received it.
Mr Vugler said because Spotless was now paying the same base rate as the District Health Boards there was no need for Spotless to remain as an employer in the market.
"Spotless workers are finally saying: Pay up or get out and are asking DHBs and the taxpayer to also say: Pay up and get out," Mr Vugler said.
District Health Board spokesman Craig Climo said everyone is talking.
"We are actively working towards resolving the situation," Mr Climo said.
Yesterday Mr Climo said in a statement that talks were at a delicate stage and it would be inappropriate for District Health Boards to comment further.
Spotless services spokesman Peter Jennings has so far not returned phone calls.
Middlemore's service manager of acute care Dot McKeen said patients will have noticed less variety in their diet with cereal and fruit for breakfast, rather than porridge or a cooked breakfast.
Ms McKeen said for lunch patients got a sandwich, rather than the usual hot lunch.
"The strike is Spotless' strike. They are supplying alternative staff," Ms McKeen said.
She said clinic areas are being given cleaning priority and extra orderlies have been assigned.
Ms McKeen said if the strike was ongoing then the major difficulty would be with the lack of variety in patient's diets.
"It's about whether you get hot corn flakes or cold corn flakes," Ms McKeen said.
She said for the hospital it is "business as usual".
