Nurses and midwives across New South Wales walked off the job for a 15% pay rise and safer working conditions on September 24, in one of their biggest protests in 50 years.
Speakers told the rally that many were moving to Queensland, where the pay and conditions are better.
Nurses report having to work 18-hour shifts, saying it is dangerous when they are so tired.
“We need to be valued; we work so hard”, was a common refrain at the Gadigal Country/Sydney rally. “It’s actually pathetic that we’re the lowest paid nurses across the whole of Australia,” one nurse said.
The NSW Nurses and Midwives Association is quoting health minister Ryan Park’s own words back at him: “I want to reiterate, nothing is more important to me as minister of health than investing in our essential health workers.”
NSW Labor offered a 10% rise over 3 years, but 0.5% of that is a mandated superannuation rise.
Rallies were also organised in Tweed, Albury, Armidale, Blayney, Cooma, Crookwell, Grenfell, Gunnedah, Manilla and Port Macquarie.
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