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Wage Guidelines FAQ

We have developed a list of FAQ's to support our wage guidelines. 

1. How and why were these wage guidelines developed?
The NZVNA is the representative body for veterinary nurses and allied veterinary professionals in New Zealand. It is our role to advocate for veterinary nurses on a wide range of topics and advocating for appropriate remuneration is one of those. Historically, veterinary nurses have been poorly paid, and we hope the narrative around current wage structures and our newest wage guidelines will help to change that. Our wage guidelines are developed using a range of information, including the current average wage for veterinary nurses in New Zealand (taking into consideration qualification and years of employment), the minimum and living wage for New Zealand, and CPI.

2. What is an RVN and RVNS?
The Allied Veterinary Professional Regulatory Council of New Zealand (AVPRC) is a voluntary regulatory body overseeing the registration of veterinary nurses. For information on the roles and responsibilities, scope of practice and graduate standards, please see the AVPRC website here: https://www.avprc.org.nz/

3. Where do veterinarians fit in this? Were they surveyed as part of this process?
The NZVNA is a representative organisation for veterinary nurses. We do not include veterinarians in our surveys. For information regarding veterinarian wage/salary information, please contact the New Zealand Veterinary Association.

4. How does this compare to other related professions or professions with a similar level of qualification?
We don't have this data however the average salary in NZ for a range of professions can be found here: https://www.seek.co.nz/career-advice/article/a-guide-to-salaries-in-your-industry 

5. What about other employee benefits?
Whilst we believe that additional benefits such as a uniform (or compensation if staff are purchasing their own), NZVNA membership, a CPD allowance etc, should be included in an employee's overall remuneration package, this doesn't compensate for a poor base wage. Our guidelines are based on the minimum actual hourly rate we feel allied veterinary professionals should be getting. Other employee benefits should be on top of that base wage. 

6. Where do VNAs fit in this?
The NZVNA recommend VNAs and other paraprofessionals be paid at least a living wage as a starting point, increasing with experience from there. Currently, the living wage is $27.80 (1 September 2024: https://www.livingwage.org.nz/).