Race Relations
New Zealand Nurses Organisation
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) represents over 46,000 nurses and health workers. Members include nurses, midwives, students, kaimahi hauora, health care workers and allied health professionals. NZNO are the nursing union in Aotearoa New Zealand and the leading professional body of nurses in Aotearoa New Zealand. Te Runanga o Aotearoa is the arm through which our Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership is articulated. NZNO members enhance the health and wellbeing of all people of Aotearoa New Zealand and are united in their professional and industrial aspirations.
Project 2012
Te Rau Kōkiri
Te Rau Kōkiri is the Māori and Iwi multi-employer collective agreement (MECA) that is fighting for pay parity for these NZNO members in the primary health care sector. It is a unique employment agreement for several reasons, firstly, as the employers and employees agree that pay equity must be achieved, and the campaign is based on Tikanga Māori principles. NZNO, the Māori and Iwi employers and health workers all agree that pay equity must be achieved.
Māori and Iwi primary health care providers appear to receive less funding than DHB and other private sector providers for staffing costs. Additional government funding is needed to recruit and retain a skilled and culturally appropriate workforce. Māori nurses and primary health workers play a vital role in the Māori community health sector and in improving health outcomes for Māori. They have the essential skills, qualifications and experience but are being paid significantly less than their colleagues in other sectors. This is an issue of equity and needs to be addressed.
NZNO members and representatives of the Māori and Iwi employers jointly presented to the Health Committee on 29 April 2009. The Health Committee’s working group concluded that there was an equity issue regarding pay rates for Māori and Iwi health workers. They recommended that the Government establish a working group to address the issues raised in the petition and report publicly on its findings within six months.
The Government did not support the Health Committee’s unanimous recommendation to establish a working group. No further progress on this issue was made, although the need to address pay inequity remains.
The campaign for funding and pay parity will continue in 2012. The next step has been to request formal Facilitation through the Employment Relations Authority (ERA). If the ERA agrees to facilitation they will work with NZNO and the employers to see if a negotiated bargaining outcome can be reached.
All 55 employers must participate in the process. This is the first MECA in Aotearoa to use Facilitation.
The Te Rau Kōkiri project team will continue regular communication and activities with its members as the campaign continues.
More information can be found at http://www.nzno.org.nz/home/campaigns/te_rau_kōkiri
Contact : Leanne Manson LeanneM@nzno.org.nz