Lab workers protest stalled wage talks

Medical laboratory workers from Dunedin Hospital protest in the Octagon yesterday amid a stalemate in pay negotiations with employer Awanui Labs.

Medical Laboratory scientist Terry Taylor said there had been virtually no progress, more than a month after workers held their first picket.

"The offer that the employers made to these workers here has been, to be brutally honest, quite obscene."

For many staff this would not even be a 5% increase, although laboratory workers were paid 30%-40% less than other health professionals, he said.

Their work took place behind the scenes, but it was an important part of the healthcare system.

"The reality is there needs to be some serious intervention to sort this mess out."