Nurses strike at Prince Alfred Hospital

Wednesday, August 26, 1998 - 10:00

Nurses strike at Prince Alfred Hospital

By Shane Bentley

SYDNEY — More than 500 nurses from the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPA) at Camperdown held a 24-hour strike on August 18 against staff and service cuts.

The strike and rally were held to oppose proposed cuts of 66 nurses and 100 ancillary staff, as well as a $10 million budget reduction.

The NSW Nurses' Association voted overwhelming on August 14 to strike, despite the Industrial Relations Commission's Justice Cahill stating that he deplored the decision to strike.

Nurses at RPA confront increasing workloads, and patients are not receiving adequate care, said association general secretary Sandra Moait. Unless the RPA agrees to fill staff vacancies, the union would not rule out further industrial action, she added.

From GLW issue 330