Members overwhelmingly endorse a national agreement; the national ballot held last month emphatically proved that public sector members want a national collective agreement. What are the next steps on the journey to that final destination?

THE RESULT of the national ballot last month--a 98 percent vote in favour of a national nurses' and midwives' collective agreement--was stunning. It sends a very clear message to the public and politicians about our national unity and our commitment to winning fair pay.

With the vote coming in at no less than 94 percent hi any district health board (DHB) and 100 percent in one, we had a better usual voting turnout, with the highest turnout in Auckland.

However, we are now on a tight timeframe to get the next steps in the national bargaining process underway.

As this issue of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand went to press, nominations for delegates who wish to be considered for the national 14 strong delegate team and the "backup" team were being received. The team was due to be elected by June 9. The delegates will undertake two days' training before negotiations start. There are five NZNO staff on the negotiating team--industrial adviser Glenda Alexander and organisers Carol Brown (Auckland), Jenny Dorrian (Hamilton), Lyn Olsthoorn (Palmerston North) and Chris Wilson (Christchurch).

NZNO has already agreed with District Health Board New Zealand (DHBNZ) to start these historic negotiations on July 13 and 14. Historic because they are the first public sector national negotiations since the Employment Contracts Act, introduced in 1991, decimated nurses' and midwives' national award. We will have to have our negotiating team elected and endorsed, and the claim and ratification process confirmed before the end of this month.

Key NZNO and DHBNZ representatives had a positive meeting late last month, which bodes well for the upcoming negotiations.

Another round of meetings was scheduled to be held around the country between June 14 and 25. These meetings were to give members the opportunity to discuss the next stage of the negotiations, and to endorse the team that will be representing members' issues at the negotiations, and the ratification process that will be used to confirm these claims. The goals of fair pay and safe staffing, which were also endorsed by a 98 percent majority during the national ballot, will be shaped into specific claims. The claims will be based on what members have consistently told NZNO staff over the last decade, ie they want more money, reasonable workloads and safe staffing,

In late May, the NZNO staff members on the national negotiating team met in Auckland to develop a detailed plan for the next phase of this project. We established communication strategies and defined the roles and expectations for working together. A kit has been produced for organisers and delegates which contains the time line and sets out the "job" descriptions of those who will be directly involved in the bargaining.

The core 126-strong delegate team will be the negotiating team's link back to workplaces. We will need to work collectively and all members need to participate. The success of this process will rely on members keeping up to date with progress and giving us feedback. We will be making sure that there is good information available and opportunities for members to have input. Please help by attending meetings and keeping in contact with your local representatives. Information will also be circulated in workplaces and it is up to members to ensure they read it and are informed. This process is about winning "fair pay" for all of our members. And all members need to play their part in achieving that goal.

The results of the national ballot con firmed that nurses and midwives want to be paid the same regardless of where they work; that nurses and midwives have always recognised the injustice inherent in different pay rates in different parts of the country. The vote affirmed nurses' and midwives' sense of fair play, as well as their desire for fair pay.