Nurses on four-hour work stoppage

Nurses are conducting a four-hour work stoppage to demand the withdrawal of all cadre officers in the Directorate General of Nursing and Midwifery and Bangladesh Nursing and Midwifery Council.

The work stoppage will continue from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm on Tuesday.

The nurses have been staging protests to demand the appointment of eligible and experienced nurses at the director general and director posts in the DGNM and the president and registrar posts in the council since Sept 9, reports bdnews24.com.

They went on a three-hour work stoppage on Sept 30 and Oct 1 across the country. They halted the protest programme after the health advisor assured them their demands would be accepted.

However, on Oct 6, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare gave two nursing officers additional responsibilities in addition to their regular duties, but without appointing them fully as directors at the DGNM.

In response, the nurses are conducting another work stoppage, said Dr Md Shariful Islam, convener of the Nursing and Midwifery Reform Council.

"All the nurses and midwives, the students and the reform council are frustrated with the ministry's decision. One of the directors was not removed from their post and no eligible or experienced nurse was appointed for that post. Under the circumstances, we have announced a work stoppage to fulfil our single point demand," he said.

The nurses staged a protest near the DGNM on Monday wearing red badges.