Junior doctors optimistic over work hour agreement

A recommended settlement spiked hope their battle will end

AUCKLAND: Junior doctors’ longrunning battle over work hours appears to be coming to an end.

Three thousand doctors have negotiated in a multiemployer collective agreement for ‘‘safer’’ rosters since January 1 last year.

Yesterday, New Zealand Resident Doctors Association national secretary Deborah Powell confirmed the district health boards’ bargaining team would recommend settlement of the agreement to board chief executives tomorrow, before the association formally proceeded to ratification by its members.

She was cautiously optimistic the long battle was coming to an end.

‘‘I’m apprehensive. We’ve thought we’ve had a deal before’’.

She was not aware of any previous occasions chief executives turned down an agreement recommended by the boards’ bargaining team.

Junior doctors would be relieved, Dr Powell said.

‘‘The residents want this settled.

‘‘They’ve been fighting for rosters to be changed so they don’t have to work seven night shifts in a row or 12 days in succession.’’

Almost 3000 junior doctors went on strike for three days in January, following another walkout late last year.

The proposed settlement included that doctors would not be required to work more than 10 consecutive days and would be rostered a corresponding day off during the week for each weekend day worked, Dr Powell said.

This means doctors on the identified rosters had four rostered days off in a fortnight.

Doctors would be rostered no more than four consecutive night shifts of up to 10 hours, with stipulated recovery time post nights.

When a resident doctor had rostered days off during the week because they worked the weekend there was corresponding drop in pay of between $192 and $342 a day, depending on salary level and seniority of the doctor.

The multiemployer collective agreement which expired in February last year would remain in force until February next year.

Doctors would be allowed to work backtoback weekends, but some rostered days off would adjoin weekends when the doctor is not working, Powell said. There was a 1.5% pay rise effective immediately and an increase in the rates paid when a resident doctor carried out work over and above that described in their job description. — NZME