RN Rachele Griffin began her nursing career after completing a Bachelor of Health Sciences followed by a Master of Nursing in 2016. Nursing was a pragmatic choice to secure employment after university, not her intended career.

“I thought nursing would at least guarantee me a job. It turned out I really enjoyed it,” she said. 

Rachele has worked at Nepean Hospital since graduation. She rotated through medical imaging and the surgical short-stay unit before securing a position in intensive care, which she had enjoyed during her student placement. She’s been in ICU ever since.  

Rachele joined the NSWNMA at the start of her career. Her father, a carpenter, was a union member and workplace delegate. “He encouraged me to value those principles,” she said. 

Two years ago, she agreed to become a NSWNMA alternate delegate, feeling compelled to step up because her large branch (about 1,650 members) was struggling to find enough volunteers to fill branch positions.  

Rachele attributes the shortage of members willing to step into branch roles to several factors. 

“These are volunteer unpaid positions, which involve extra work. Also, a lot of nurses don’t actually understand what the Association does or how they can be part of it. They just want the pay rise that comes from union activity. 

“A lot of nurses don’t like to rock the boat. They don’t want to be singled out, and they don’t like to challenge the status quo.” 

Turning point 

For Rachele the Association’s “Value Us” campaign in 2024–25 was a turning point. 

“I did a fair bit of work to get more ICU staff on board for those strikes,” she said.  

“In previous years, we would usually get one or two people on strike from a unit of 135 nurses. But on one of the “Value Us” action days I was proud to be one of 18 ICU nurses on strike. 

“That came from talking to people and explaining the process we were going through to try to secure better pay and conditions.  

“I emphasised the power in standing together and not letting one or two people potentially be singled out by management for going on strike. 

“That campaign was really empowering. Nurses are crying out for a better deal and there was massive energy during those strike days.”  

In the run-up to the recent NSWNMA biennial elections, the branch president asked Rachele to consider standing for election as branch delegate and secretary, as the incumbent was stepping down. She was elected to both positions unopposed. 

One of her main goals is to encourage a new generation of younger nurses to take on NSWNMA branch roles from an older generation nearing retirement. 

She also identifies a need for more Association stewards at the ward level to promote union activity directly with colleagues, which she believes is more effective than other forms of communication. 

“Of course, the Association should send out emails and texts, but it’s not the same as having a colleague come to you and say, hey, have you thought about this? What’s your take on this?  

“And then having a conversation to clear up some myths that they believed or some fears that they had around industrial action.”