Unionisation of nurses, like that of educators advances the public interest beyond the primary interest of the nurses themselves. BONU therefore should also fight for a quality health care system, accessible to all. Through collective bargaining and other methods of struggle, it should turn around the stigma of disgruntled nurses in government hospitals. We therefore support BONU's existence as justifiable both in their own interest and in social terms.
However, we hasten to warn the new union about the hostile local trade union environment, which is characterised by intense competition in the public sector, driven by businesses and union benefit schemes. Private business, especially the financial sector, depend on government employment and income to drive their growth. So they selfishly cause a lot of confusion and divisions in the labour movement in their profit drive. Ours is therefore, a very harsh environment to nurture a union.
