Historical information
In October 1986, Victorian nurses began an historic strike action which was to last 50 days. This video is the nurses version of the dispute. Despite widespread condemnation mainly from the media, the nurses eventually won out for an appropriate career structure including significant pay increases. Actual strike footage together with nursing training films and old photographs explore vocational stereotypes and place the strike in the context of the current crisis in the health care system.
Physical description
44 minute video file (.mp4 multimedia format), transferred from original videocassette. In colour, with sound. Original was released with a booklet explaining the broader context for the documentary.
Subjects
References
- Catalogue record: Running out of patience (VHS format) Australian Centre for the Moving Image catalogue record for original videocassette.
- Brigden, Cathy, and Lisa Milner (2013) "Roll Out the Red Carpet: Australian Nurses on Screen" in WorkingUSA (volume 16, number 4, pages 505-523). Research paper by Cathy Brigden and Lisa Milner, featuring several paragraphs on the documentary, analysed in the context of nurses, women and trade unions on film.
- Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation Victorian Branch: Our History Brief overview of the history of the Victorian nurses' union, including useful historic background for this documentary.
- 30th anniversary digital exhibition: The 1986 50-day Victorian nurses and midwives strike A digital exhibition launched by the ANMF (Victorian Branch) on the 30th anniversary of the historic Victorian nurses’ and midwives’ strike. Includes video interviews with key figures, historic photos and primary materials.
