Pacific island midwives

Pacific midwives in NZ join protest for better conditions

The midwives said they are overworked, stressed and underpaid.

Just over two percent of the country's midwives are of Pacific descent but the workload is often heavier because Pacific mothers tend to experience more complicated births.

One of two Pasifika representatives on the national College of Midwives, Trish Taihia, said they end up working many more hours to offer appropriate cultural care, but their pay doesn't adequately recompense them.