An escalating pay row between NSW nurses and the state government has culminated in the first major strike in two years as officials ruled out meeting wage demands.
The stop-work action by nurses and midwives on Tuesday is expected to affect elective surgery and cause delays for some patients, while support for life-saving care will be maintained.
The action is part of a NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association push for a 15 per cent one-year pay hike for members, a demand the state government has ruled out as unaffordable.
All NSW public sector workers, including nurses, have been offered a three-year 10.5 per cent pay increase factoring in a mandatory rise in superannuation payments.
The union's general secretary, Shaye Candish, said public sector nurses and midwives would strike for 12.5 hours, starting at 7am.
"Nurses and midwives do not take industrial action lightly and continue advocating for better pay and staffing to ensure all communities receive the safe clinical care they deserve," she said.
Major rallies will be held at several sites in Sydney, as well as in Newcastle, Coffs Harbour, Bathurst, Gosford and Albury.
The union, which represents more than 77,000 workers, had "made a compelling case" for the pay rise but the government had "shown no willingness to provide a meaningful revised wage offer", Ms Candish said.
"We shouldn’t have to consider increasing industrial action but the government has failed to put a better offer on the table, which leaves us no option," she said.
It will be the first large-scale nurses' strike under the current Labor government after a series of mass walk-outs over staffing levels during the former coalition administration's tenure.
Health Minister Ryan Park said he was disappointed in the strike action and he remained at the table to negotiate with workers.
"We are continuing to invest in nurses each and every day, but a 15 per cent ask in a single year is simply not affordable," he said.
"It would put an enormous amount of pressure on inflation and it would set a precedent for a range of different essential workers."
Contingencies were being put in place to minimise disruption to patient care, Mr Park added.
Labor axed the coalition's public sector wage cap after coming into power in March 2023 and six months later agreed to provide a more-than 10 per cent one-off pay rise to many of the state's teachers.
But since then it has come under increasing pressure to provide significant wage increases to a range of other frontline workers, including police, paramedics and firefighters.
Opposition health spokeswoman Kellie Sloane said Mr Park and the premier "gave false hope to our health workers and now we're seeing strikes and stretched hospitals".
"It's time for them to step up and deliver real solutions for our hardworking health workers and the patients who rely on them," she said.
