Online ratification closed in mid March and 84 per cent of those who voted were in favour of the deal, which delivers pay increases ranging from 4.5 per cent to 7.75 per cent and locks in a new registered nurse (RN) step 6.
The new PHC MCA was achieved after more than a year of negotiations, strike action and intense lobbying for extra funding by NZNO, and the New Zealand Medical Association and Green Cross Health Ltd on behalf of employers. Initially, more than 10 per cent of employers rejected the deal but this was not enough to disrupt employer ratification.
NZNO advocate, PHC industrial adviser Chris Wilson, is thrilled with the strength of the vote in favour of the deal and said it had seen NZNO membership boosted by more than 200. “I’m very pleased with the outcome. It’s a solid step to finalising pay parity in the next MECA. The collectivity of the membership leaves no doubt that pay parity is a priority and must be achieved. And that collectivity is not to be ignored when more funding is needed in the future.”
She said the additional funding to ensure pay parity with the district health board (DHB) step 6 would not have been forthcoming without PHC members’ hard campaigning and collectivity and employer support.
