Senior doctors paid $420,000 more during strike

Extra pay for senior doctors cost the the Otago District Health Board $420,000 during the two junior doctors' strikes.

Board business analyst Grant Paris told the hospital advisory committee yesterday this expense was offset by the $100,000 saved from not paying the junior doctors during the strikes, leaving an overall cost of about $300,000.

Junior doctors who are members of the New Zealand Resident Doctors Association went on two two-day strikes, one in April and the other in May.

Their agreement is still not settled.

Mr Paris told the committee senior doctors covered for the striking doctors where possible, resulting in the equivalent of about seven staff.

The payments were made through overtime and, while an hourly rate ranging from $250 to $500 an hour was agreed nationally, some doctors elected to accept a lower rate in line with their usual rates of compensation.

The board expects to end the financial year at the end of the month about $4 million over budget on staff wage settlements.

About half of that was due to the senior doctors' contract, which will be offset by about $500,000 extra funding provided by the Government.

The cost of the junior doctors settlement is expected to be $300,000 more than anticipated.

The only area where the settlement has come in under budget was nursing, but that was mainly due to timing issues.

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