New Zealand nurses are staging a rally on Saturday amid a bitter dispute with the Government over the stretched health sector.
An estimated 57,000 nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants are taking to the streets at 20 locations around the country.
New Zealand has faced a wave of industrial action in recent months, with strikes also taking place in the education and emergency service sectors.
For nurses, worker shortages have stoked further tensions between unions and the Government.
"It"s our day of action!" a post on the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) Facebook page said on Saturday.
Health Minister Ayesha Verrall has stopped short of saying the system is in crisis, much to the dismay of unions.
"Everyone in this country is obviously going to be very, very concerned about entering into the health system," NZNO chief executive Paul Goulter told AM earlier this week.
"We've got workers, doctors, nurses, allied health professionals right across the board from GP practices, right into [the] hospital, actually being flogged to death, trying to maintain a system that's failing and what do we get in response?"
In pictures: Nurses rally
