HOSPITAL-NURSES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXXIX, Issue 9650, 5 July 1919, Page 3

HOSPITAL-NURSES

DEPUTATION TO MINISTER

WELLINGTON, July 3

The Minister of Public Health was intei-viewed to-day by members of the Industries Committee in their capacity of members of Parliament relative to the pay, hours and general conditions applying to nurses in the public hospitals in New Zealand. The. deputation represente dto the Minister that the pay was altogether inadequate for probationers. With the high cost of living girls could not keep themselves in clothing without considerable help from then- people. Members urged that £1 per weok should bo paid for tfhe first year, and that increases should be also made for first and third year nurses who were receiving £80 to £100 a year respectively, which was not sufficient. Many of the matrons were also not receiving adequate payment. There was no overtime payment, and owing to short staffing due to low pay they had to work long hours, for which they received no extra pay. The deputation also urged an incroa.se of. holidays for nurses to one month a year, and said it would be of advantage if they were given two days off each month to save them from over-strain. The question of superannuation was also 1 raised.

■Mr Russell, in ' replying, promised support to any progressive policy submitted to the Health Department. He sympathised with the deputaton regardng some matters it had spoken about. Probationers were learning the business and could aferwards earn £3 3s a week at private nursing or could establish private hospitals in conjunction with doctors. There ought to be superannuation foi- nurses, but the trouble was that nurses were not-Gov-ernmen officers. He was prepared to recommend that steps be taken to give superannuation to women who spent their lives in hospital work—not private nursing. Tn- the meantime a nrivate fund had been established by Dr. Lindo Ferguson,, which now amounted to £10,000. and tho Government proposed to subsidise every payment from it_ to the extent of 10s in the £. Tho idea of one month's leave was a good ono, and he would bring it before the Hospital Conference. If Parliament was prepared to grant the money necessary to raise the Hospital Board subsidy to, say, 255. they could make the condition that the extra 5s was to be devoted to the nurses of j the staff.