Bargaining Bulletin

Updated 26/09/2025

Te Whatu Ora Physiotherapists

After delays of two months, we are meeting with the employer on 9 October to discuss the proposed offer for settlement of our Collective Agreement. We recently received a reply from Te Whatu Ora in response to our Official Information request for AST employee vacant fte across all the districts, and it revealed that Physiotherapists have the second highest fte vacancy across all the professions. Unsurprising then, that the findings from our APEX survey ‘Health of the Health Sector’ showed that they scored less favourably than the AST average across almost all survey indicators. Staff shortages, workplace stress, lack of a Career Framework in place continue as major issues for Physiotherapists.

Te Whatu Ora Physicists

Te Whatu Ora has postponed reconvening the negotiations for the renewal of our Medical Physicists Collective Agreement three times and have now confirmed the dates of 7 and 8 October to continue. Members are unimpressed with the postponements. There are two new regional cancer treatment services established in Whangarei and Taranaki, the former recently commenced, the latter proposed to commence from December 2025. Physicists are in demand but without adequate supply within Aotearoa, we are competing internationally for this workforce to meet our needs. Te Whatu Ora target for “faster cancer treatment” won’t be met without paying attention to the pay and conditions of Medical Physicists.

Te Whatu Ora Anaesthetic Technicians

Our Collective Agreement expires on 30 November. We will be sending the notice to initiate bargaining to the employer next week. We are meeting with APEX AT delegates this Friday and we look forward to catching up with the news from our reps regarding how everything is going for ATs since our last negotiations.

Private Sector Anaesthetic Technician

Negotiations for Grace Hospital ATs commence on 2 October. Evolution healthcare is waiting for the employer to provide an offer to us after our two days of negotiations were held on 24 and 25 July.

Grace Hospital Theatre Sterilising Unit

Negotiations concluded at the end of August, and members’ new pay rates and backpay are scheduled for implementation this week.

RHCNZ

RHCNZ (Radiology Healthcare NZ) are the owners of Pacific Radiology Group, Bay Radiology and Auckland Radiology Group. Our negotiations for a multi-employer collective agreement are ongoing and have been difficult. Members have been very patient and member numbers have grown since RHCNZ took over these three companies.

Since this change of ownership, members have expressed a sense of having less say in how the work is done and how the work is organised. They have reported a growing sense that this employer is less concerned with employee wellbeing and mostly concerned with increasing patient throughput. There is constant pressure on our members to work faster and do more scanning, never cancel patients as well as ensuring to cater for the clinics which allow for ‘walk-ins’. Muscular skeletal injuries are a known occupational risk for Sonographers and MITs but there does not seem to be particularly robust Health and Safety systems across RHCNZ, and members have sporadically mentioned to us about the number of their colleagues with work related injuries.

We look forward to ‘landing’ a MECA with this private radiology company, so we can then focus on building union power across RHCNZ.