Nurses Refuse Overtime, Stop Emptying Bins as Wages Fight Escalates
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA, JUL 7 – Queensland nurses refuse non-clinical duties including filing and meal delivery to demand a 13% pay rise and improved conditions amid staff shortages and burnout, union says.
- Stage two of protected industrial action commenced at 7am on July 8, with members of the QNMU stepping back from non-clinical duties throughout Queensland Health facilities.
- This escalation follows failed negotiations since January and the QNMU's rejection of the government's 11 percent pay rise offer over three years in favor of 13 percent.
- Union members refuse non-clinical tasks, including cleaning beds, making beds, emptying bins, and will not work overtime without four hours' notice, focusing instead on direct patient care.
- QNMU secretary Sarah Beaman emphasized that nurses reached this decision reluctantly but felt compelled due to government actions, warning that up to 66 percent could lose their nationally leading pay and working conditions.
- The dispute highlights serious workforce issues risking further escalation unless the government honors its pre-election commitment to nation-leading wages and conditions.
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Nurses refuse overtime, stop emptying bins as wages fight escalates
Queensland nurses and midwives are ready to walk off the job, as frontline workers take action to secure better wages and working conditions for the first time in more than 20 years.
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