Nurses present 18,000 signature pay petition

Nurses working in GPs' surgeries today presented an 18,000-signature petition to Parliament, demanding the same pay as their hospital colleagues.

Practices nurses say that by next year, a nurse in a general practice will earn about $160 a week less than a registered nurse in a public hospital.

Staff and registered nurses, most of whom work in hospitals, are receiving a pay rise of around 20 per cent pay over two and a half years.

About 30 practice nurses presented their New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) union petition to Labour list MP Maryan Street at Parliament.

Accepting the petition on behalf of Health Minister Pete Hodgson, Ms Street said Labour supported the nurses' bid for pay parity but warned achieving it would not be easy.

"The route is not immediately easy to see but we do support the principles behind your cause," she said. "Kia kaha -- you'll need that. It will be difficult at times."

Rosemary Minto, chairwoman of the NZNO College of Practice Nurses, said practice nurses - the majority of them working with GPs - were being driven back to hospitals for better pay.

"Our pay and conditions have slipped far behind those in other community roles such as teaching and policing," she said.

"It's fair to say that temperatures are rising."

NZNO president Marion Guy said the Government's primary health care strategy depended on nurses and they needed to be paid fairly to do their jobs.

- NZPA