|
Resident medics strike over pay
By SHEILA LASIBORI
ABOUT 160 residential medical officers throughout the country have gone
on strike.
They walked off their jobs last Tuesday after claiming that they had not
been paid by the Health Department for the last 12 fortnights.
The medical and health science residents, which include (residential)
health extension officers, medical officers, pharmacists, dental
officers and medical laboratory officers, say they would not return to
work until their salaries are paid by the Department.
A spokesman told The National yesterday that they had forwarded copies
of letters containing their grievances to the Health Secretary, Health
Department’s human resource (HR) director and the National Doctors
Association (NDA).
But when NDA president Dr Kauve Pomat was contacted about this, he said
had not sighted such a letter but was aware of the ongoing problem of
“non-payment of salaries” to the residential health workers.
Dr Pomat said the officers cannot be expected to work, when they were
not being paid their salaries.
He said the issue raised by the medical workers was the same issue
raised three to four years ago.
In their letter dated June 5, to the Department and NDA, the medical
officers said they raised their grievances with the authorities on March
26 but nothing was resolved.
“We the new residents of 2007 in the streams of medicine, laboratory
science, imaging, pharmacy, dental therapy and inclusive of resident
HEOs have decided to walk off our jobs until our salaries are paid.
“We have had enough of the ‘mangy dog’ treatment by certain officers
within the Department of Health and we are tired of receiving excuses by
the above groups,” the group stated in their four-page letter.
The letter was signed by 42 medical officers representing Port Moresby
General Hospital (19), Angau Hospital in Lae (6), Madang (4), Nonga in
East New Britain (3), Mt Hagen (3), Kimbe (2), Goroka (2), Alotau (2),
and Boram Hospital in East Sepik province (1).
They stated that they had 10 reasons for the stop work which among
others included:
*Non-payment of salaries for six months (12
pay days);
*Continual deferment of pay date by Health
Department;
*Continual ‘passing of the buck’ between the
department’s human resource management, staff and salaries, Department
of Personal Management and the Treasury Department; and,
*Chronic deceit despite written assurances of
payment (Memo No. 32/2007 dated May 25, 2007 by the Department’s HR
director).
They said they had submitted their pre-employment forms in October last
year and their staff movement advice (SMA) on Jan 2 this year, documents
necessary for their salaries to be produced.
 
|
