By Friday, 19 September 2025, 8:41 Pm Article: Rnz

Copyright scoop

Hill, Reporter

Health New Zealand will
have to prove the senior doctors’ union has “breached good
faith” during their long-running
contract dispute in order for the Employment Relations
Authority (ERA) to overrule the bargaining process.

an unprecedented move for the agency, it has announced its
intention to apply to the ERA to “fix” the terms of its
contract with the Association of Salaried Medical
Specialists (ASMS).

Acting chief executive Dr Richard
Sullivan told Morning Report that negotiations with
the union had hit a wall, ahead of a 48-hour strike by 5500
senior doctors and dentists next week.

“Unfortunately
we’ve had no counter-offer to work with. We’ve been turning
up and turning up in good faith with increased offers, but
unfortunately, we’ve had no counter-offer to move this

A Health NZ spokesperson said it expected to
lodge an application with the ERA on Friday or

Such a request had never been made by Health
NZ previously, nor was its legal team aware of any “fixing”
applications involving the former district health

However, if it succeeds in this case, it may
have implications for other industrial disputes, including

fight with the Nurses Organisation, which has been
ramping up strike action.

Bargaining not over, says

Senior doctors have slammed the move as
“unwarranted”.

ASMS executive director Sarah Dalton
said the case would not meet the threshold for compulsory
intervention by the ERA because the union had not walked
away from bargaining.

Health NZ had declined the
union’s offer to meet again ahead of Tuesday’s

The block to resolution was Health NZ’s
failure to make an offer to doctors that was not “a pay cut
in real terms”, she said.

“We haven’t had any
meaningful response from the employer about workforce
planning, about investment in salaried staff, about how they
plan to address widespread shortages.”

Minister wants ‘an end’

Health Minister Simeon Brown
said engaging the ERA was “ultimately a decision for Health
NZ”, but acknowledged he wanted “to see this brought to an
end” after more than a year of failed negotiations.

was disappointed the union had rejected
his earlier recommendation to both parties to enter
binding arbitration to avoid strike action, and had “now
rejected further bargaining and has decided to continue with
strike action”.

The ERA declined to say whether any
other government agencies had filed “fixing” applications
previously.

Director of regulatory and advisory
services Daniel de Villiers said it was not possible to say
how long the ERA could take to make any decision.

Employment Relations Authority cannot provide information
about whether or not any particular parties have lodged
applications in the Authority, comment on specific cases
before the Authority or predict how long it will take for a
determination to be made on an application before the
Authority.”

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