Tebogo Msimanga |
The Young Nurses Indaba Trade Union (YNITU) is calling on all Nurses to boycott International Nurses Day, which will be celebrated on Thursday the 12th of May.
YNITU President Rich Sicina said they urge all Nurses not to attend or to participate in any celebrations associated with International Nurses Day but rather join the planned YNITU mass action to the South African Nursing Council (SANC). Sicina is calling on all nurses to assemble at the Union Buildings at 9:00am on 12 May in Pretoria to march to the offices of the nursing professional regulatory body, the SANC.
“YNITU strongly believes that nursing in general as a profession is under attack by those who are entrusted to transform it. “For 5 years, CHE and SANC failed to come up with a progressive programme that will allow nurses to advance their nursing careers even further. They are still saying they need more time to come up with sufficient detail in scope and depth in order to address the articulation of a 4-year diploma and 1-year diploma in midwifery.”
Sicina reiterated that the Nursing professional regulatory body has failed to ease the fears and anxieties of nurses. “ It is also silent about the position of R.425, a legacy nursing training program which, is being phased out.”
Sicina further said Nurses were hailed as heroes during the covid-19 pandemic, “but they did not get any recognition in terms of increased pay, not even as a token of appreciation from employers, and worst of all, the opportunity for further education, training and development has been senselessly halted exposing nurses to continuous vicious exploitation by both private and public sector employers.
He said this is why the call to boycott International Nurses Day should be seen as a cry for help from those of us in the profession. It is a way for us to put nursing and the healthcare system in the spotlight and to highlight the shocking working conditions which healthcare workers are exposed to.”
