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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
Damon Cronshaw

'Unfairly slugged': Nurses to rally for free parking at John Hunter

Secretary of John Hunter Hospital's NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association branch Matthew Rispen. Picture by Peter Lorimer

Nurses and midwives at John Hunter Hospital will rally on their own time to call for free parking on Friday.

They are "deflated and angry" over the NSW government's decision to reinstate parking fees at the hospital.

Since the start of February, healthcare staff had been paying up to $21 a week to park at work.

The government says staff parking at this rate was "heavily subsidised".

However, members of the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association John Hunter branch felt they were "unfairly slugged".

They questioned why other regional hospitals such as Maitland, Belmont and Wyong were exempt from parking fees.

Last week, Wyong MP David Harris said on social media: "In great news, I was able to announce this morning that parking at Wyong Hospital will remain free for staff and patients".

Nurses and midwives say the government was wrong to classify John Hunter as a "metropolitan hospital", given the lack of public transport options compared to those available in greater Sydney.

"The reintroduction of parking fees is a major blow to all healthcare workers, particularly during a cost-of-living crisis and when COVID-19 cases are surging again," the union said.

A NSW government spokesperson said "we have delivered on our commitment to extend free parking to staff and patients in regional and rural hospitals".

"Most people would reasonably understand that there is a big difference between areas which don't have access to public transport and regional and rural areas," the spokesperson said.

"Feedback from the community has raised concerns that free parking for all staff at metro hospitals is crowding out patients and carers from accessing parking."

The Newcastle Herald reported last month that the NSW government was reintroducing parking fees for nurses, midwives, doctors and allied health workers at John Hunter, Calvary Mater and James Fletcher hospitals from February 1.

The parking costs had been waived during the pandemic.

In 2020, five months after the free parking was introduced, Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery told parliament how a John Hunter nurse thanked the government on her Facebook page.

"It saves me sometimes long walks in the rain and at night when I am already tired enough," the nurse stated.

Another nurse said a 12-hour shift would become a 14-hour shift if Newcastle's public transport system was used, given the longer commute.

An email sent to staff on January 11, documented parking costs.

A staffer on a salary of more than $62,501 would have $14.47 deducted each week for standard parking, or $20.91 for premium parking.

Premium parking close to John Hunter was offered to shift workers around the clock for safety reasons.

The union also raised concerns that the expansion of the John Hunter campus had affected parking availability, with about "150 staff parking spaces currently closed for construction works".

"These works are expected to continue for at least another 18 months," the union said in a statement.

Nurses will also enter negotiations for a pay rise in May. Last year, they accepted a one-year pay rise of 4 per cent.

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