Junior doctors in Whanganui join 2500 Te Whatu Ora employees striking across the country

Doctors in Whanganui joined national strike action this morning at the roundabout at the intersection of Heads Rd and Liffiton St. Photo / Bevan Conley

Doctors in Whanganui have joined strike action as about 2500 junior doctors across the country walk off the job.

The strike is from 7am today to 8am tomorrow.

Te Whatu Ora said emergency departments would remain open and patients should turn up to their regular appointments unless they heard otherwise.

In Whanganui, about 20 doctors gathered at the roundabout at the intersection of Heads Road and Liffiton Street.

One resident medical officer said they were there to advocate for equal pay amongst all of their colleagues.

“We’re getting a lot of pay cuts ... that are affecting a lot of staff and especially junior doctors.”

Another resident medical officer said there was already a shortage of GPs in Whanganui and pay cuts would make this more difficult.

“Trying to fill those positions is going to be harder if there’s no incentive to stay because you get paid more elsewhere.”

She said no doctors should be left behind, including GPs and radiation oncologists, “and areas that are quite hard to fill shouldn’t be getting pay cuts”.

Another doctor commented that no one wanted to strike and leave the hospital: “We have lots of other colleagues who are there helping; we aren’t doing this lightly.”

The doctors taking industrial action are members of the New Zealand Resident Doctors Association - senior doctors and junior doctors from the other main union are still working.

The association said Te Whatu Ora’s proposals to employees “included a menu of unacceptable elements”, citing pay cuts for some staff among other issues.

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.