The NZNO delegate is closing in on a decade nursing — but spoke to Kaitiaki beside a lamp post in front of Parliament as she joined a multi-union rally delivering a mammoth petition to protect pay equity.
In only a few months, the unions, including Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa – NZNO, gathered nearly 94,000 signatures before handing them to Opposition parties on Parliament’s steps on Wednesday.
Rees, a specialist palliative care advanced registered nurse, has seen nurses leaving the hospice sector in droves this year alone.
She’s angry to see that knowledge, experience and expertise – from health-care assistants to senior nurses to new graduates — draining away because of pay inequity.
“I was one of a team of two until recently and my colleague left into a sideways position for a private entity for $30,000 more.”
In May the Government axed all 33 current pay equity claims worth $12.8 billion ahead of Budget 2025.
It installed tough new thresholds for bargaining to even recommence. NZNO had 12 active claims covering 13,231 members in play, plus one review for Te Whatu Ora members, covering about 40,000. All up more than 50,000 members — including a Plunket settlement only weeks from completion.
The petition called for a reversal of all cancellations, for law changes to be undone and for pay equity settlements to be delivered to every worker.
Standing in the crowd watching the politicians speak was hospital registered nurse and NZNO delegate Sarita Sharma holding a Maranga Mai flag.
Sharma is at every rally like this, supporting the union. Today will be a warm-up of sorts for the following week where she’ll be part of Health NZ staff strikes: “Yes, of course” we would see her there.
On Wednesday she was focused on protecting pay equity. Staff-patient ratios were too high, and getting heavier by the day — all the while safe staffing was becoming worse, she said.
Meanwhile Qiigle Pheenyx, home-help support worker in aged care, and E Tū member, has a question for PM Christopher Luxon and the rest of the Government.
Do they not think they’ll get old, need help, one day too?
“I wonder how they feel about their own parents or themselves of their grandparents if they’re in the situation requiring help?”
Pheenyx said she wanted to swear when she found out the Government was axing the pay equity claims. She lost potentially tens of thousands from her own pay packet over the past few years because of pay inequity.
“For women in particular, we’re the ones who do most of the mahi in this field . . . 90 per cent is females, we do amazing work and we care.”
She signed the petition “ages ago” and was rapt with the number of signatures. “Hopefully that gets them to stand up and listen.”
Labour workplace relations spokeswoman Jan Tinetti said the Government, without any warning during elections, or a select committee process, had ripped up claims and “gutted” the Pay Equity Act.
There was an outpouring of support from New Zealanders all over the country and all political persuasions, against the Government, she said.
The full extent of the Government’s betrayal of New Zealand women was seen in The Budget — “$12.8b that should be in the pockets of women”.
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said she held the belief that the likes of her grandchild should “never have to go backwards”.
She thanked women’s allies at the hui — men — and drew laughter from the crowd as she reminded them, “you all came from us”.
“You wouldn’t be here, and sadly some of those politicians making dumb decisions wouldn’t be here, if it wasn’t for women.”
Ngarewa-Packer asked the gathered crowd to promise her one thing — that in 2026 they would not let “this s***-head government” win reelection.
Meanwhile, NZNO will push ahead to test the new thresholds by re-raising its claims. Pay equity advocate Glenda Alexander has said in Kaitiaki while there is a widespread view that the new barriers are prohibitively high, “we are determined to test this”. This would hold the Government to account, where and if NZNO found itself unable to progress the claims.
“Until then, we won’t know for sure how strong they are.”