Asked how long, Brown’s office was not able to provide an estimated timeline by Kaitiaki‘s deadline this afternoon.
The Post yesterday reported Brown saying it was “not my job” to fix a pay gap of up to 20 per cent for nurses who work in primary health compared to hospitals.
“Ultimately, all of those are to do with negotiations between their employers and employees. That’s not my job,” he told the news outlet.
‘The Government is absolutely committed to pay parity for primary care nurses, but we know this will take time.’
Even after being reminded of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s pre-election debate promise to pay all nurses the same no matter where they worked, Brown didn’t back down, The Post reported.
“Whether they’re in aged care, whether they’re at GP community practices, or in the DHB-equivalent system they should be paid the same,” Luxon told journalist Paddy Gower during the September 2023 Newshub leaders’ debate.
‘Out of context’
A spokesperson today told Kaitiaki Brown’s comments were “taken out of context”.
“The Government is absolutely committed to pay parity for primary care nurses, but we know this will take time.”
Brown had been referring to pay negotiations between private practices and the nurses they employed, the spokesperson said.
‘Our focus, now, is shifting that emphasis back to primary care because that’s where most people access health care.’
“Nurses working in private GP clinics are not employed by the Government, which means any pay negotiations are between the private practice as the employer and the nurse as the employee — and that’s what the Health Minister’s comments refer to.”
Nurses working in hospitals had seen their pay increase “significantly” over the past few years, up to $125,000 — which was on a par with New South Wales, Australia, the spokesperson said.
“Our focus, now, is shifting that emphasis back to primary care because that’s where most people access health care.”
In fact, the highest rate for registered nurses (RNs) working at Te Whatu Ora is $106,739 per annum. To bring that up to $125,000 would mean another 19 per cent in overtime — well beyond a eight-hour shift, NZNO analysis has found.
‘We primary nurses have waited such a long time for this — we want this escalated as soon as possible.’
NZ college of primary health care nurses chair Tracey Morgan said pay parity with hospital nurses was urgently needed to address staff shortages in primary health, so it was “awesome the minister is taking nurses seriously and addressing the systemic problem that we’ve had”.
“Maranga Mai, every nurse everywhere. We primary nurses have waited such a long time for this — we want this escalated as soon as possible.”
NZNO primary health-care (PHC) nurses are currently in pay negotiations with a group representing about 500 general practices and after-hours/urgent care centres after the 2023/24 multi-employer collective agreement (MECA) expired in June.
Morgan — who is part of the bargaining team — has said lesser pay rates were driving nurses out of primary health-care.