16 January 2026
Jaime Thatcher
[FYI request #33056 email]
Tēnā koe Jaime
Your request for official information, reference: HNZ00104933
Thank you for your email on 29 November 2025, asking Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
(Health NZ) for the following under the Official Information Act 1982 (the OIA):
“During the late November NZNO soft strike action, MidCentral made a policy requiring all
Nurses to present a medical certificate for as little as one day’s sick leave. As per the
Holidays Act, this cost is met by the employer.
I request a summary of the costs of executing this policy, as well as any documentation or
discussions relevant to making the decision to implement the policy”
Response
Requests for medical certificates are made on a case-by-case basis and are not applied as a
blanket requirement to all staff during industrial action; therefore, this part of your request is
refused under section 18(e) of the OIA as no documentation or discussions relevant to making the
decision to implement the policy exist.
Decisions are informed by the circumstances of the individual absence and the operational context
at the time. The reimbursement for MidCentral District to employees for costs associated with
providing medical certificates during the period of the industrial action in November was $2364.61.
These arrangements are consistent with:
• the relevant collective agreements
• the Health NZ Leave Policy; and
• the Holidays Act 2003.
There are no separate or special sick leave provisions that apply solely because industrial action is
occurring.
How to get in touch
If you have any questions, you can contact us a
t [email address].
If you are not happy with this response, you have the right to make a complaint to the
Ombudsman. Information about how to do this is available at
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
by phoning 0800 802 602.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, Health NZ may proactively
release a copy of this response on our website. Al requester data, including your name and
contact details, wil be removed prior to release.
Nāku iti noa, nā
Daniel e Coe
Manager (OIA) Government Services
Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora
