What ANMF (Vic Branch) community rally to prevent a nursing and midwifery shortage
Where The steps of Victorian Parliament, Spring Street, Melbourne
When Midday Tuesday 23 September 2025
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Victorian Branch) is asking members and the community to join a rally in support of student nurses and midwives at midday on Tuesday 23 September at Victorian Parliament.
More than 2000 Victorian nursing and midwifery students are set to miss out on a graduate program place in 2026.
This is happening at the same time the health sector is forecasting a nursing and midwifery shortage in the next few years.
ANMF (Vic Branch) Secretary Maddy Harradence said: "All Victorians should care that the State Government invested taxpayer dollars in educating the next generation of nurses and midwives and is now wasting that investment. We must ensure today's students are tomorrow's nurses and midwives.
"Public and private hospitals are still asking nurses and midwives to work overtime, double shifts and extra shifts; we must employ our next cohort of students to avoid a workforce shortage.
"We are calling on the Victorian Government to fund additional graduate places and hold urgent discussions with the private acute sector about their level of investment in graduate nurses and urgently explore all viable options to ensure we have a sustainable nursing and midwifery workforce into the future," she said.
The community is also invited to sign and share the ANMF's Use Us or Lose Us petition to Premier Jacinta Allan and Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas at anmfvic.asn.au/gradpetition. The petition already has more than 3000 signatures.
About us:
The ANMF (Vic Branch) has over 111,000 members – nurses, midwives and aged care personal care workers – across the Victorian health and aged care sectors.
