The ongoing dispute between NSW Health and the Nurses & Midwives Association is no closer to being resolved even after a recommendation delivered by the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) was announced today.

The Minister for Health, Ryan Park, said in a statement that the IRC recommended both parties enter into four weeks of intensive discussions.

"During this time, the IRC recommends NSW Health begin paying nurses the interim 3 per cent increase, back-paid to 1 July 2024 contingent on the industrial action ceasing.

"The Government will accept this, and has notified the Association of its intention to do so, on the basis the Association also agrees to the recommendation.

"This is an opportunity for nurses to receive increased pay and patients to continue to receive care while the broader dispute is in the process of being resolved by the parties.

"I want to reiterate, nothing is more important to me as Minister for Health than investing in our essential health workers.

"Working in partnership with the Association and NSW Health, we have achieved much together since taking Government, including:

• Nurse retention levels reaching pre-COVID levels - as of 30 June 2024 retention has improved a further one per cent to 93.6 per cent over the past 12 months; 
• Investing heavily in the nursing workforce - including $572 million to save the jobs of 1,112 whose positions were unfunded from 1 July 2024; 
• Rolling out Safe Staffing Levels - implementation is now commencing across 16 of our Emergency Departments across metropolitan and regional NSW; 
• Achieving nurse numbers at record levels - the nursing workforce has increased by over 2,000 FTE to over 56,000 FTE since taking office; and 
• Removing the wages cap and delivering much needed wage increases - the majority of NSWNMA members voted to accept a 4.5 per cent wage increase last year, the highest increase in over a decade."

In response, the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) members will hold a 24-hour strike next week over the NSW government’s refusal to properly value the dedicated patient care that public sector nurses and midwives provide in increasingly challenging conditions.

The NSWNMA statement said thousands of nurses and midwives will strike for 24 hours from the start of morning shift on Tuesday (24 September), after the Minns government’s failure to demonstrate their willingness to negotiate in good faith by close of business yesterday.

NSWNMA General Secretary Shaye Candish said the union remained committed to finding a path forward, but the government had failed to negotiate despite repeatedly being implored to do so.

“Our hospitals are in crisis with increasing activity and increasing numbers of nurses and midwives leaving for better pay interstate. The public expects their local hospital to be well staffed, but the current wage setting for nurses and midwives means they cannot stay,” said Ms Candish.

“We have genuinely tried to avert this action, but the government has simply failed to demonstrate a willingness to move.

“Our members are desperate to provide the safe level of care NSW patients need when seeking treatment inside public hospitals, but instead of their skilled work being remunerated accordingly, their employer believes a baseline 3 per cent pay offer is enough.

“It’s not acceptable for the state government to continue turning a blind eye to the pay inequity that is seriously undermining this state’s largest female-dominated workforce. We now have the lowest-paid nurses and midwives in the country.

“The government seems to forget that nurses and midwives are leaving for better wages and conditions in Queensland and Victoria, where wages are between 10 and 22 per cent higher.

“It’s also clear when two major public sector unions are undertaking industrial action, that we have a government that is incapable of dealing with the issues at hand.”

NSWNMA Assistant General Secretary, Michael Whaites, added public sector workers were trying to repair the damage caused by the previous Coalition government’s pay freeze.

“The government has acknowledged the pay gaps are driving the recruitment and retention crisis in our public hospitals, but it is now clear that after four months of negotiation, they are yet to do any work towards putting an improved offer to our members,” said Mr Whaites.

“It's​​​ clear this government is failing to listen to its largest female-dominated workforce, instead they expect nurses and midwives to sit down and be quiet and continue to pay 2024 bills on 2008 wages.

“We support our colleagues across the union movement in attempting to redress the harm caused by the previous government’s wages policy, and at this stage, it seems the Minns government is no different.”

The NSWNMA has confirmed minimal, life-preserving staffing will be maintained in public hospitals and health services during the 24-hour strike from next Tuesday morning.