Hundreds of surgeries canceled as nurses go on strike in Australian state

By Anadolu staff

Hundreds of surgeries have been canceled after thousands of nurses began their strike in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), local media reported on Wednesday.

Over 10,000 nurses and midwives across NSW have walked off the job, demanding a pay raise, according to ABC News.

The nurses and midwives complained that other states are paying higher salaries than NSW.

"They obviously look after their nurses more than they do in NSW," nurse Mia Casagrande said, warning to leave her job as she can get 18% more salary in Queensland.

The state Health Minister Ryan Park said hundreds of surgeries were canceled due to the strike.

"Of course I'm disappointed, I'm extremely concerned about hundreds of people today who are going to be missing out on very very important surgery," he said, adding it would not be possible to "essentially erode the gap in wages in a single year" because it would cost the state several hundred million dollars.

According to the state government, it had made several offers to nurses and midwives as it tried to reverse the impacts of the former government's wage cap, but none had been accepted.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid