KEY POINTS:
Senior nurses are to get a pay rise of 19 per cent in an agreement covering 2500 nurses working for 580 employers struck today.
The New Zealand Medical Association and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation said they have reached a proposed settlement of the Primary Health Care Multi Employer Collective Agreement, which covers nurses and administrative workers.
The settlement comes at a time when health services have been disrupted by strikes by junior doctors, radiographers and lab workers.
The settlement was achieved after nearly 12 months and 27 days of negotiations and it has to be ratified by employers. It is being welcomed by the Council of Trade Unions.
If the settlement is ratified it will mark the resolution of the largest multi employer collective agreement (Meca) in the country.
"This Meca is a momentous achievement for NZNO members," said NZNO advocate Chris Wilson.
By July next year the pay rate for a practice nurse with five years experience will be 19 per cent higher. The agreement also grants five weeks' annual leave after six years of service.
The Meca supersedes the previous National Practice Nurse Collective Employment Agreement, which expired on November 30, 2005, and the National Medical Receptionist Collective Employment Agreement.
It covers registered nurses, practice nurses, enrolled nurses/nurse assistants, midwives, administration staff and medical receptionists, who are members of the NZNO.
While the NZMA represented 580 employers in the negotiations, 67 per cent of them must ratify the agreement.
NZMA negotiator Dr Branko Sijnja said the negotiations were complex and difficult at times.
"The Meca was an ambitious undertaking due to the large number of employers involved, and reaching a settlement which would be suitable for the majority of employers was challenging."
The NZMA was pleased that settlement has finally been achieved," Dr Sijnja said.
CTU president Ross Wilson said the success of the negotiation was a strong signal that with the right will and intent, private sector employers could bargain collectively for industry standards.
"This agreement will go a long way to ensuring that nurses are valued and retained in primary health care services and organisations, which are a cornerstone of the health service," Mr Wilson said.
The NZNO will hold a ratification process in the new year after the employer ratification process.
NZNO members working for Maori and iwi providers have a separate Meca and negotiations on it begin in February. It covers 500 workers.
- NZPA
