Senior doctors and dentists in New Zealand announced their intentions to strike Monday following unsuccessful pay negotiations with New Zealand’s public health agency, Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand. This will mark the first time that the union representing senior medical officials, the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, has gone on strike.

In a press release, the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists stated that 80 percent of their members voted in favor of the strike after negotiations for an adjusted pay rate failed between the association and Te Whatu Ora. The association claimed that their request comes after two years of “real pay cuts,” amounting to an 11 percent decrease in real-term pay for senior medical officials.

Executive director of the association Sarah Dalton stated:

Te Whatu Ora will not even pay senior doctors and dentists the bare minimum to ensure their staff do not take a real-terms pay cut for the third year in a row. Every employee in New Zealand deserves to have the value of their income maintained, especially when they are performing critical front-line tasks and being asked to cover as many staffing shortages as our doctors currently are.

President of the association Julian Vyas joined Dalton’s concerns, adding that continued underfunding may exacerbate understaffing issues in the professions. Vyas said that association members have consistently warned of overwork and burnout amidst a “critical shortage of senior dentists and doctors.” Vyas said the real-term pay cuts have forced many to consider leaving the public health sector.

Speaking to reporters, New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins urged the association to return to negotiations. He said, “We do value the work that our senior doctors do,” and continued, “I don’t want to see any of our medical workforce on strike and I think the best way to resolve those issues is around the bargaining table.” Te Whatu Ora echoed Hipkins’ appreciation for senior doctors and dentists, stating, “We know our workforce is under pressure and addressing this across the health sector is top priority.”

According to information obtained from Te Whatu Ora by Radio New Zealand, senior medical officials in New Zealand currently receive up to $318,000 per year, with the average base salary coming in at around $238,500, excluding “additional salary payments and superannuation.” Te Whatu Ora has offered a pay increase for the year 2024 amounting to somewhere between $15,000 and $26,000, with an additional lump sum payment of $4,000.

However, in a Tuesday press release, Dalton disputed the figures. She stated that 2022 salaries for senior medical officials ranged from $219,992 to $235,337. She also stated that Te Whatu Ora never offered the association a $26,000 pay increase. “Their figures about average earnings of a senior doctor, pay increases they claim to be offering and number of new senior doctors they have recruited are hard to fathom, news to us and have not been discussed during bargaining,” said Dalton.

New Zealand is currently experiencing a cost of living crisis, which has drawn other professions to go on strike as well. Most recently, high school teachers went on their first ever strike after negotiations with the Ministry of Education fell through. The strike was eventually resolved through an August collective agreement.

The strike will take place over the course of two to four hours on September 5, 13 and 21.