FRUSTRATED and overworked healthcare staff are furious that they must start paying for parking at Newcastle hospitals amid a COVID case surge and a cost of living crisis.
The state government will reintroduce parking fees for nurses, midwives, doctors and allied health workers at John Hunter, Calvary Mater and James Fletcher hospitals from February 1.
The cost was waived during the COVID pandemic but because Newcastle facilities are deemed "metro", the meters are being turned back on.
A nurse of 25 years at John Hunter Hospital told the Newcastle Herald she was shocked at the timing.
"What frustrates me is that whether you're a doctor, nurse, or a cleaner, it's a service job and we serve the community when they are at their most vulnerable - sick, injured or dying," she said.
"Does the public realise we're out of pocket to do that, and is that fair?
"The sentiment amongst all staff is anger and frustration."
An email sent to staff on January 11, seen by the Herald, sets out the costings.
Someone on a salary of more than $62,501 will have their pay deducted by $14.47 per week for standard parking, or $20.91 per week for premium parking.
Premium parking - close to John Hunter Hospital - is offered to shift workers coming and going at all hours for safety reasons.
The nurse said to be "slugged an additional premium for your own safety" was an extra kick in the teeth.
"My take on that is that it's terrible," she said.
A NSW government spokesperson told the Herald in a statement that parking had been made permanently free at rural and regional hospitals where public transport "was not readily available".
That included Belmont and Maitland, but not Newcastle.
The nurse said she didn't know a shift worker that found it safe or convenient to catch a bus - the only public transport servicing John Hunter Hospital - during nighttime hours.
"I would argue that the infrastructure does not exist at John Hunter for shift-working staff to get to work, it's just not available," she said.
The nurse said the last thing someone working a 12-hour shift would want, would be to make it a 14-hour shift by relying on Newcastle's public transport system.
The nurse travels from the Maitland area to John Hunter, and told the Herald she had considered transferring to her local hospital, where parking is free.
"And, John Hunter cannot afford to lose experienced staff, at all," she said.
She works across both Maitland and John Hunter, and is concerned that her single pay packet means her salary will be deducted by the set amount, regardless of the shifts she spends at Maitland Hospital.
The nurse said carparks were so packed at the hospital that even staff that fork out for parking from February 1 could not be guaranteed a space.
She said shift workers that started at lunch were turning up an hour early to find a park, or were parking long distances away and moving their cars closer on their tea breaks.
The Nurses and Midwives' Association has called on the state government to urgently extend free parking at Newcastle campuses.
John Hunter branch secretary Matthew Rispin told the Herald it was an issue lots of members had brought up with him.
"I find it's a very Sydney-centric policy," he said.
"Newcastle doesn't have the same large public transport network that Sydney does."
He said the problem with parking and the reintroduction of fees were just more reasons not to be a nurse or midwife, especially off the back of the pandemic and wage freezes.
"Especially with staff shortages that are there at John Hunter, there needs to be more focus on retention and recruitment," he said.
The hospital is back under COVID precautions and dealing with what Mr Rispin described as the biggest surge in cases since 2022.
He said the cost of living was also biting.
A NSW government spokesperson said the previous Coalition government did not set aside any funding to continue free state-wide staff carparking.
"Like all temporary COVID-19 measures, this arrangement always had to come an end," they said.
