Tasmanian nurses rally following 'disappointing' government pay offer

Nurses and midwives have stepped up a pay dispute with the Tasmanian government, walking off the job at two southern hospitals today.

The Royal Hobart Hospital and the Repatriation Centre in Hobart were affected by the stop work action, as members from the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) and the Health and Community Services Union rallied to protest against a state government pay offer.

The offer, which is the first the government has made, consists of a 3 per cent pay rise for the first year of the new agreement, followed by 2.75 per cent and 2.5 per cent in the subsequent years.

Addressing rising violence and aggression has been a major issue for staff during the bargaining period.

Nurse Will Lincoln, who works in Mental Health Services, told the crowd of hundreds that health care workers had reported being "punched, kicked, spat on, verbally abused, threatened and intimidated".

"Every nurse and midwife should be able to come to work knowing they will be safe — yet for far too many of us, that basic expectation is not being met,"

Mr Lincoln said.

 "We are not simply asking for acknowledgement that violence and aggression exist, we are asking for meaningful measures that provide protection, support and recovery."

The current bargaining agreement for nurses and midwives expired in June.

A spokesperson told the ABC the government was "committed to delivering" a pay rise and improved conditions.

⁠"An offer has been made and we are working constructively with unions on the next steps," they said.

Union 'disappointed' by lack of action on priorities

When announcing the offer last week, Premier Jeremy Rockliff said:

"We have worked collaboratively to address a number of issues raised through the unions' logs of claims."

ANMF state secretary Emily Shepherd welcomed "positives" in the offer, which included new pay allowances for some staff.  

However, Ms Shepherd said members had been left "disappointed", saying several "priority matters" were either not included or needed improvement.

She said members were shocked that extra "personal impact" leave days were only applicable to those in mental health, the emergency department and intensive care unit.

"No matter where nurses and midwives work, they are subjected to distressing and traumatic situations,"

Ms Shepherd said.

"Midwives face supporting mothers as they deliver stillborn babies in the maternity setting, medical oncology members support those receiving treatment for cancers — treatment which can at times make patients incredibly sick," she said.

"And nurses in schools are engaging with students, receiving disclosures of abuse while also facing aggression and violence."

'Community pays the price' for understaffing

Speakers at the rally told the crowd the government's offer was under inflation, and would not be enough to tackle understaffing.

James Lloyd, an after-hours nurse manager at the Royal Hobart Hospital and branch president of the ANMF Tasmania, said workers were suffering from "fatigue, stress and burnout".

"On some of those early shifts it's not uncommon for me to see 20 plus gaps across the whole hospital with only three or four casual staff available to fill them."

He also claimed it was also contributing to bed block, saying, "ultimately the Tasmanian community pays the price".

Nurse Audrey McAllister received a loud response from the crowd when she asked who had experienced the ordeal of a double shift, which can mean workers clock in for 16 to 20 hours.

Ms McAllister spoke about research which has found being awake for upwards of 17 hours can cause the same level of impairment as a blood alcohol concentration of 0.05 per cent.

"We're not allowed to drive home with this state of impairment, but somehow we're allowed to give someone a blood transfusion. We're allowed to give someone chemotherapy,"

she said.

Ms McAllister has previously spoken publicly of being chased by a group of men at night, when walking to her car after a shift at the Royal Hobart Hospital.