Around 5,000 nurses in the state of New South Wales (NSW) rallied at the state parliament despite last minute orders from the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) to immediately cease industrial action. About 150 public hospitals are affected after the nurses’ union assured members they would not be met with fines for disregarding IRC orders. Skeleton staff remained in behind to ensure care for the critically ill. NSW Nurses and Midwives Association (NSWNMA) General Secretary Brett Holmes said nurses stood “in solidarity” and declared to the premier that their goodwill was over. “This staffing crisis in our health system should never have happened and could have been avoided if those sitting in that building had listened to us,” Holmes said in a media statement sent to The Epoch Times. The union demanded a nurse-to-patient ratio of one nurse to four patients for every shift across the public health system, a commitment …
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