Queensland cancer specialists walk out of hospitals over LNP government’s proposed pay cut
Hundreds of cancer specialists walked out of major Queensland hospitals on Wednesday to protest proposed funding cuts that would mean pay cuts of around $30,000 a year.
Staff included more than 300 radiation therapists and nuclear medicine scientists (specialists who provide targeted cancer treatment and pain relief during palliative care) at hospitals in Brisbane, Townsville and the Sunshine Coast.
Radiation therapists walked out of Princess Alexandra Hospital on Wednesday to protest a pay cut. Credit: Courtney Kruk
At noon, about 40 radiation experts left the Princess Alexandra Hospital, while about 50 nuclear scientists gathered in the Botanical Gardens near the Houses of Parliament.
The former Labor government introduced a grant for radiation therapists in 2022 to recognize their specialist skills and increased scope of work.
A similar temporary allowance for nuclear medicine scientists was negotiated before the 2024 state election and will expire at the end of December.
Both have an annual salary of about $30,000.
The LNP government has said it will not include the allowance in the next corporate employment agreement, which has been negotiated since April, according to the United Workers Union.
The union’s Queensland Health and Ambulance Coordinator, Fiona Scalon, feared removing the allowance would lead to exodus from highly skilled professions, with some members telling the union they would move interstate if cuts continued.
“A $30,000 pay cut is nothing to take lightly,” he said.
