Technicians on strike

Strike action by anaesthetic technicians in Northland will see 30 surgeries and three scans postponed. The strike was for 48 hours – from 7am on Wednesday until 7am today – and affected patients at Wha¯ngarei Hospital, Northland District Health Board chief operating officer Paul Welford said. Of Northland’s 13 technicians, eight were striking on Wednesday. APEX union said strike action was being taken as the Northland DHB, and other DHBs, were unwilling to bargain with the union. Anaesthetic technicians at Southland Hospital went on strike for 24 hours in October. Dr Deborah Powell, national secretary of APEX, said the technicians had been in negotiations with the Southern DHB for a year.