History

Two nurses, Evelyn Nowland and a Miss Clancy, began working separately on the idea of a union for nurses and were brought together by the redoubtable Jessie Street who saw the improvement of nurse' wages and conditions as a feminist cause.

There efforts were finally rewarded when the Assocition was registered as a trade union in 1931 and had its rules registered in October 1932.

This was a huge achievement. From 1899 the Australasian Trained Nurses' Association (ATNA) had organised nurses professionally, but it was controlled by doctors and did not see its function as improving working conditions for nurses.

The first nurses' Award was achieved in 1936, but since it actually reduced trainee nurses wages by 5/- a week, it didn't do much for Association membership!

Over time, the Association has amalgamated with a number of other organisations. These include the Trained Mental Nurses' Association (1945), the Australasian Trained Nurses' Association (1972) and, more recently, the harmonisation of the NSW Nurses' Association and the Australian Nursing Federation (1988). As a result of the latter, nurses in NSW are able to influence decision making at the national level.

The Association is affiliated with the Labor Council of NSW and the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and is represented on numerous Boards and Committees which add to its responsibilities and extend its influence in the wider community.

Since the first Award for nurses in 1936, the Association has continued to press for improvements in nurses' pay and conditions.

The Association has:

developed greater career opportunities for nurses
achieved professional rates of pay
successfully fought for occupational superannuation
achieved the 38 hour week for nurses
achieved the establishment of Nurses Practitioner positions in NSW - the first in Australia

We are now working on reasonable workloads for nurses.

For a full, detailed history of the Association you can purchase or borrow a copy of the book "An Unsentimental Union" by contacting the Association.

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