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Fellowship...

For those of you that don’t know my background I am one of the original members of STONZ and alongside Heath Lash many years ago we felt there needed to be a union that had RMOs at the centre of the decision making. We shifted our focus to one that focused on being collaborative and proactive (something that embodies what being a doctor is all about). The reason I make this comment is because this is what the essence of being on Fellowship is all about. It is not just a technical exercise of l...

February Update

Kia ora koutou, Hope everyone has been settling into their new roles and hospitals well. My department in Tauranga has welcomed 9 new RMOs (out of 14 total!). It has been a busy start to the year for many of us. We are approaching application time for some specialties, Good Luck! Also, make sure you are applying for expenses to be paid back around these as well. February has been a tumultuous month for Aotearoa. We have seen devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle to regions aro...

January Blog

Hello everyone.I hope that everyone had a lovely Christmas and New Year’s, and that you have been able to get some time off over the busy holiday period. I was able to go back to the UK for the first time in 4 years to see my family, and for some much-needed rest, which has definitely reminded me about the importance of taking the leave you are entitled to.We know this is a very busy time for everyone, including those moving around the country and starting new jobs and having many new experien...

Holiday Season FAQs & Support Team Hours; Got a question or need help over the holiday season?

Over the holiday season, the support team get lots of questions about public holidays and what RMOs are entitled to over this time. To help, we have created a FAQ document which we have shared on social media and is also available on the website, HERE.The STONZ support team office will be closing from midday on Friday the 23rd of December and across the following weeks will be closed on the public holidays.However, a member of the support team will be available on the non-statutory days (29,30,3...

How do you train for an Iron Man whilst also on ENT training? Christina shares her experience!

After watching a friend complete iron man in 2014 I decided my goal was to complete a half…I am not built for triathlon, and I do not have the concentration so I thought a half would be an achievable goal. I could swim ok, could run… (well plod), and had never been on a road bike. Over the years I tested the road bike, did a few triathlons and decided to make it my goal for 2022.I’m not going to lie - training around work was hard. A lot of sessions had to be forgone due to work commitment...

Mid-Term Negotiations Update: We are almost there…

We have almost completed our mid-term-negotiations and updating the collective agreement to remove ‘DHBs’ and transition the language and interpretation to be reflective of the new one employer model. There is not much substantial change to the collective, but we believe we have negotiated to ensure that RMOs are protected through the transition. In particular around the interpretation of ‘Districts’ and ensuring that RMOs cannot be asked at a whim to move from one hospital to another wi...

Introducing the Team: Linda was STONZ first employee and central to the development of the support team.

Hi, I’m Linda and the first one on board in the ‘STONZ office’ working from home in Wellington since January 2019, taking care of memberships and membership fees and various admin.  My previous employment was 10 years in the medical staff office at a hospital in Wisconsin, USA before moving back to New Zealand in 2009.  Since then, I have been part of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and NZAGS (New Zealand Association of General Surgeons).  Being part of the Suppor...

A message of thanks from the Te Whatu Ora team as part of the STONZ National Engagement Forum.

On behalf of the Te Whatu Ora Senior Leadership, we would like to acknowledge and thank you for your dedication and mahi over the last 12 months.  It has continued to be challenging with the impacts of COVID-19, winter and workforce pressures impacting across the motu.  The professionalism and commitment of the RMO workforce has not gone unnoticed, your dedication to patients and support of each other and your teams is greatly appreciated.Reflecting back, it is great to see that despit...

Meals Allowance Pilot 2023: Want the opportunity to bring your own lunch?

During the STONZ and DHB bargaining in December 2021, the ability for RMOs to be offered an allowance in lieu of a meal was discussed. This followed the survey of STONZ members earlier in 2021 which indicated approximately 50% of respondents would prefer to be paid an allowance rather than receive a meal subject to certain protections.It was therefore agreed that a 12-month pilot from January 2023 to January 2024 to trial a meal allowance in lieu of a meal would be an appropriate way of explorin...

December Update

Christmas chaos begins to rein again. I was one of the lucky ones last week, escaping for a week of annual leave to visit the newest member of our whanau. One of life's true treasures. En-route, the Air New Zealand safety video inspired me with a metaphor of the RMO world and what we do at STONZ. Tiaki is the Māori principle of being guardians of people, place and culture on which the safety video is based. Tiaki inspires and challenges us to understand that we didn't inherit a c...

New Graduate update

Recently there have been discussions around whether TIs/new PGY1s should be offered employment in December, rather than waiting until the start of the new RMO year in January 2023. This was posed as a way to assist with the current workforce challenges and to fill current vacancies this side of Christmas. Looking back at our time starting as new PGY1s, as the STONZ Executive team, we have advocated that the first few months of a RMOs career needs to be well supported and that RMOs should receive...

November Update

Kia ora tātou kātoa Thanks for taking the time to read our monthly update, although we are heading towards the end of the year – the work the STONZ team is doing is not slowing down. What have we been up to this month? As we all know the current workforce challenges are forefront of our minds with many specialties experiencing large vacancies both short-notice due to sickness and burnout, and permanent vacancies where districts have been unable to recruit new RMOs. It seems this summer we ar...

Delegate Training Days

We recently had a great 2-days in Ōtautahi for our annual Delegate training where we covered topics from ‘the ethics of striking in healthcare, RMO meals, the use of Te Reo Māori within unions, RMO Remuneration and much more’! We also had a great session with Rob Campbell, Chair of Te Whatu Ora and an interesting and inspiring talk from Erin Baker, one of the best female triathletes of all time, winning a total of 104 of the 121 races she entered. This was a great opportunity for STONZ del...

Get to know your support team: Janelle

Hi, I’m Janelle and I started with STONZ in February 2020. Prior to starting with STONZ, I was the RMO Unit Team Leader at Christchurch Hospital. Commencing my new job with STONZ at the beginning of 2020 was certainly an interesting time to start but gave me an opportunity to quickly develop a lot of connections around the country as the DHBs and unions worked together during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the past 2 years I’ve been able to be part of STONZ as its grown from 120...

House Officer Entitlements

Did you know the STONZ Collective Agreement has clauses that are only for House Officers? These support their ability to access training and to gain a place on an accredited training programme. These are: Clause 6.5: PGY1 House Officers in their first 6 months will be rostered RDOs and work a 10/4 pattern to ease the transition into being a House Officer. Clause 7.4: House Officers in their second and subsequent years of service, will be able to access 5 days each year of medical education leave...

House Officer Representatives Report

Bri Northey: My values of prioritising learning and teaching including the funds to achieve this, flexibility and life/work balance and a team environment matches STONZ values exactly and that’s one of the reason’s I put my name forward for this role. I'm so pleased I have been with this union since being a house officer because they are constantly trying to better our supports, as our needs and training requirements change and evolve. I’m proud to say I’m now part of the executive team...

October FAQs

Still having problems with reimbursements taking longer than 6 weeks? It's essential you let us know - we as a union have worked hard to develop pathways for resolving this once and for all but we rely on you as our membership letting us know where this is happening so we can sort it out. Has your roster been published within 28 days? STONZ has a documented process outlined in our agreement to escalate instances where rosters are not published with 28 days. This is so we can identify systematic ...

We’re Hiring

Have you ever considered what it might be like working for a union? Well now is your chance! I can say all the usual things that are often listed in recruitment ads like, work for a great team, flexible working hours, competitive pay, have your birthday off etc, but that should all be a given (and we are  a great team by the way), so what makes us different? One, we’re a non-for-profit with the aim to protect and improve the training our junior doctor workforce in Aotearoa. Two, you’d ...

October 2022 STONZ Update

How is it October already? Kia ora everyone, and thanks for taking the time to read our update. Some of the feedback we’ve received from members recently is that you’d like more frequent communication and hear more about what STONZ, and the team have been up to. The executive team going forward are going to write a short ‘Blog’ each month and post on our website, this will be in addition to our quarterly newsletter (next one coming soon!). So, what have we been up to? The last couple of...

Health NZ / Hauora Aotearoa

With the 1st of July fast approaching there have been a few questions about what this means for RMOs. Health NZ have been sending regular updates and many DHBs have been doing the same, but we’ve taken some of the key messages and included them here. If you’d like to sign up for regular updates directly from Health NZ, you can do so HERE. Will my reporting line change?Health NZ have formally communicated with the small number of people who will have a reporting line change on 1st July. For e...

Signing out as Treasurer - Blair York

One phone call from Heath Lash and Earle Savage in mid-2019 has certainly lasted longer than expected. Back in 2019, STONZ was very much a fledgling union and the current treasurer was stepping down so Earle and Heath asked me to step in for a few months to help out. I had some concerns as I was about to head into my fellowship exam, but I was reassured it wouldn’t be too much work. Walk into 2020 and bang Covid-19 arrives. I don’t think my inbox has ever been so busy; Zoom meetings, Conting...

Want to Join the Executive Team?

Hopefully you will have all received the email we sent last week advising of the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM). At the AGM, we are proposing some changes to the team following the departure of Blair York, the current STONZ treasurer. Because of this we are now accepting nominations to fill the House Officer Representative role (this is an Executive Committee position).  If you are interested in this role, please email support@stonz.co.nz and we will provide information about the pr...

The Fatigue Working Group Update

The Workforce Fatigue survey conducted by the Fatigue Management and Minimisation Steering Group (joint project with STONZ, other healthcare unions, Health NZ and Massey University), has now closed, and we want to thank all of you who took the time to participate. Your contribution helps us to have a better understanding of the prevalence and spectrum of fatigue staff are experiencing and ultimately to assist us to develop ways to better manage it. We’re really pleased with the 16,205 response...

Introducing STONZ new Research & Delegate Representatives

We are excited to announce that Chantelle Petterson has been appointed to the role of Delegate Representative at STONZ. The role of the Delegate Representative is to provide leadership across the delegate network and work to better understand the role of the delegates and how we can better support them, so they in turn can better support our membership. Chantelle is currently working as an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMS) non-training registrar at Waikato Hospital. ...

Holiday’s Act – What is it and how will it impact you?

The Holidays Act 2003 covers pay and entitlements for employees in New Zealand about all types of leave and public holidays. For those employees who work shift work, variable days and hours, or with flexible work patterns including RMOs, calculating holiday pay has been more complex. This has resulted in widespread non-compliance. Essentially, employers (not just limited to DHBs) have unintentionally been underpaying or overpaying staff what they’re entitled to. The areas requiring remediation...