Senior doctors and dentists across the country are set to go on strike, following the breakdown of pay negotiations with Te Whatu Ora.
It comes as Te Whatu Ora wanted members of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists to take a real-value pay cut for the third year in a row. A real-value pay cut is when pay rises are lower than the level of inflation. The ASMS wanted a pay rise that matched inflation.
Over 80% of ASMS members voted to hold three strikes, to send a message to Te Whatu Ora that enough is enough.
"Te Whatu Ora will not even pay senior doctors and dentists the bare minimum to ensure their staff do not take a real-terms pay cut for the third year in a row," ASMS executive director Sarah Dalton said in a statement.
"Every employee in New Zealand deserves to have the value of their income maintained, especially when they are performing critical front-line tasks and being asked to cover as many staffing shortages as our doctors currently are."
The strikes will be held on September 5, 13 and 21 for a period of two to four hours each. They have been timed so as to disrupt patients as little as possible, Dalton said.
"Doctors care about their patients but have decided failure to protect the value of their work will only result in more doctors leaving New Zealand or declining to apply for jobs here," she said.
"The net result of doctors leaving is increased pressure on the remaining workforce and longer wait times to patients. We must stop the downward spiral of our doctors' salaries to protect patients’ right to access healthcare in a timely manner."
ASMS President Julian Vyas says for too long the health system has got away with taking the collective goodwill of doctors for granted, and many doctors were now looking to leave the public health system for overseas or the private sector.
Te Whatu Ora Chief People Officer Andrew Slater said the agency values the enormous contribution of doctors and their critical role caring for the health needs of whānau and communities.
"We know our workforce is under pressure and addressing this across the health sector is a top priority, with significant work underway in this space."
Slater said the current offer would, by 1 April 2024, give senior doctors a further pay increase between $15,000 to $26,000, in addition to a further lump sum payment of $4,000 and an agreement to work with ASMS on a strategy to create visible and equitable pay and conditions for senior medical officers.
"While we respect doctors’ right to strike, a fair offer was put on the table and we’re disappointed it has not been accepted."
Contigency planning is underway to ensure safe and appropriate care for patients in the event action goes ahead, said Slater.
"We will continue to work with ASMS towards agreeing a settlement and to see if the strike can be averted."
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