Tidal wave of strike action to hit NZ on October 23
Tuesday, 30 September 2025
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Tens of thousands of workers across huge swathes of the public sector could hit the picket-line in one of the biggest strikes in New Zealand history later this month.
Plans are under way for a co-ordinated strike across much of the public sector on October 23, with nurses, teachers and a variety of other public sector workers walking off the job on the same day.
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A ballot notice for the New Zealand Nurses Organisation, seen by The Post, states that on Thursday, October 23, “ tens of thousands of public sector workers such as teachers, principals, support staff, doctors, firefighters and allied health workers plan to take strike action against a government that refuses to adequately fund public services”.
“Members have long asked that we join other public sector unions in such an action. The workers, through their unions, have balloted or are balloting for pickets on the day (23 October).
“You now have the opportunity to do the same.”
New Zealand workers can generally only strike if a collective agreement has expired and if bargaining has already gone on for 40 days. The unions involved all appear to meet this criteria.
Unions can also strike for health and safety reasons.
The ballot notice, titled, ‘ballot for joint public sector strike’, states that “rallies will be held across the country where striking public sector workers will stand should-to-shoulder and call on the Government to invest in public services…”
Members need to agree to any strike action before it takes place.
It follows months of industrial action from unionised education and health members. There are about 36,000 NZNO members.
Primary school teachers, primary principals, school support staff and Ministry of Education specialist staff - estimated to be nearly 40,000 unionised members - announced earlier this month they would strike together on October 23.
Post-Primary Teachers Association president Chris Abercrombie told The Post secondary teachers were not striking that day at this stage, but they are balloting members soon. One of the options they will be voting for is to potentially strike on October 23.
The New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union told The Post they were not striking on October 23 but would be supporting the other public services that were, president Joe Stanley said.
The Association Of Salaried Medical Specialists of senior doctors and dentists have not put anything to members.
PSA national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons confirmed the PSA's allied health workforce and mental health nurses - totalling around 13,000 - were balloting for a potential strike on that day.
“We are balloting for our allied and mental health workers and joining with other workers in health and education to send a message to this Government,” Fitzsimons said.
“There will be thousands of workers striking on October 23.”
It's understood that the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions is not involved in the effort.
Public Service Minister Judith Collins, who is currently out of the country, said the Government “urges all those in negotiations to return to the bargaining table”.
Collins previously said unions had made it “very plain, almost from the moment we were elected, that they were going to strike and strike and cause us much disruption during election year and beforehand”.
Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche, who is leading education bargaining, said the recent offer to secondary school teachers “was a very good one and teachers have an opportunity to settle and get extra money into their pockets quickly”, and the primary teacher offer was “strong, fair and addresses cost-of-living pressures”.