positivity and people power

Christina was part of a protest crowd of about 100 staff and supporters who rallied outside the Wesley Hospital in November as Uniting Care Health nurses called for ratios, fair pay and improved conditions during Enterprise Bargaining negotiations.

“There was a real sense of positivity there,” she said.

“Just knowing everyone who stood there cared about the issues and was prepared to stand up for it... there was a real energy.”

She described the rally as being “an incredible show of solidarity” and said even people who were a bit nervous about participating at first, soon felt empowered by the shared purpose of the collective.

“The best part was hearing the conversations about how much fun they were having, saying ‘I could do this every day!’,” she said.

“And seeing them experience the incredible support of the community.

“The horns didn’t stop honking and an ambo turned on sirens for support, much to everyone’s delight.”

“And at the end of the day, nothing bad came out of it, only good – and we all had a part in that.”

Taking strike or stop-work action is not something nurses and midwives take lightly – it’s always a last resort when good faith negotiations fail, and we go to great lengths to ensure we plan our actions carefully so patient safety is never compromised.

But when the time calls for it, when something is felt widely and deeply enough and talk is getting nowhere, sometimes rally action is necessary.

And there is no reason you can’t embrace the moment while you do.