Nurses have voted to commence strike action from Friday unless the Baillieu government agrees to talks with an independent umpire in a bid to end the ongoing industrial dispute.
The resolution was passed by more than 3000 nurses and midwives who held a stop-work meeting at Festival Hall in Melbourne’s west this afternoon.
The state’s regional hospitals in areas including Ballarat, Ararat, Horsham, Warrnambool and Stawell could be affected if the strike action goes ahead.
“Country nurses, country hospitals will be participating,” said Lisa Fitzpatrick, Victorian branch secretary of the Australian Nurses Federation (ANF).
Wimmera nurses Denise Hiam, Barb Uebergang, Tracey Daffy and Pauline Amos take their industrial campaign to Member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty's office in Horsham.
The Royal Women’s Hospital, Royal Children’s Hospital and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre are exempt from the rolling stoppages.
Earlier, Federal Employment Minister Bill Shorten attended a meeting with the ANF, senior state government representatives and the Victorian Hospital Industrial Association.
Ms Fitzpatrick said the ANF was promised a response by 1pm as to whether the government would agree to have the dispute resolved by Fair Work Australia.
“All we got was email saying that someone would get back to us next week,” she said.
“We needed that response to take to our members at 2pm. This is the government trying to stall again. No one seems capable of making a decision in this government.”
The issues for nurses are wide-ranging and include nurse-to-patient ratios, pay and conditions.
Victorian Health Minister David Davis is understood to be gathering details about today’s resolutions before formulating a response.
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