Anaesthetic technicians strike at Rotorua Hospital

All eleven anaesthetic technicians at Rotorua Hospital are on strike today over pay. The strike at the Lakes District Health Board follows a similar strike at Northland DHB last week. The technicians are needed for all operations that involve an anaesthetic. Those who are striking are members of the Apex union which is negotiating with six DHBs indivdually over pay. Another union, the PSA, also covers technicians, and last week recommended they and allied health workers generally accept pay rises worth at least 9 percent by November next year. Lakes DHB chief executive, Ron Dunham, told health correspondent Karen Brown Wednesdays are usually busy at Rotorua Hospital.