The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) is holding meetings around the country this month to address the issue, staff in Dunedin, Invercargill and Queenstown attending meetings today and tomorrow.
The union has been in talks with DHBs since February, but has become frustrated by the lack of progress.
ASMS executive director Sarah Dalton said the union wanted a pay rise to reflect inflation and cost of living increases.
‘‘We are very aware of the Government’s public sector pay restraint advice, but every worker has the right to at least keep up with inflation and not see their pay go backwards in real terms,’’ Ms Dalton said.
The union is also seeking to address issues of burnout and doctor wellbeing through improvements to working conditions.
‘‘It’s time the Government started walking the talk on how much we value our health workers and treat them as an asset instead of a cost.’’
The stopwork meetings are one of two that union members are entitled to
hold yearly under the terms of their present collective agreement.
