Information Services Staff Upset

“CDHB Information Services staff are upset at being threatened that any additional dollars needed for their significant pay catch-ups will only further reduce services spending on items such as waiting lists,” said Martin Cooney, Organiser with the National Union of Public Employees (NUPE) today.

“In the May 2006 CDHB staff newsletter, CEO Gordon Davies states that several collective employment contracts are due for revision this year and that any settlements above the 2.9% Government funding will only add to the CDHB $10-15m annual deficit,” said Martin Cooney. “He states that the Board must make $10-15m of cost reductions including ‘large service change’ and thus is refusing to consider even normal pay scale step increases for employees.”

“NUPE has been in negotiations with the CDHB for our IS members since November 2004,” said Martin Cooney. “There is a national shortage of IT workers and salaries are increasing elsewhere, accentuating the shortfall for CDHB IS members.”

“IS staff are in charge of Patient Management Systems and various other systems in the CDHB vital to clinical staff and patients,” said Martin Cooney. “IS staff generally do upgrades of the system early in the morning (4am) or late in the evening (10pm) to minimise disruption. Were the software implementations to be done in normal working hours, clinicians and some managers would strike problems in that system performance and stability would be affected, and clinicians and others would lose unsaved work.”

“The Government funding system for health worker salaries needs to allow Boards to pay appropriate salaries instead of placing workers in competition with services to patients for insufficient funds, while the Minister of Health washes his hands of the problem,” said Martin Cooney. “IS members are meeting this week to discuss their next step.”

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