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A class action alleging NSW Health underpaid junior doctors has settled after the department agreed to a payout of nearly a quarter of a billion dollars. More than 20,000 medicos may be eligible to claim a share of almost $230 million for the alleged underpayment of overtime and paid meal breaks. Law firms Hayden Stephens and Associates and Maurice Blackburn, which represented the plaintiffs, said the settlement was the largest underpayment class action outcome in Australian legal history. Dr Amireh Fakhouri brought the claim on behalf of junior doctors who worked in the state's public health system from December 2014 to December 2020. In a statement of claim, she alleged NSW Health failed to pay the overtime and weekend meal break entitlements she and her colleagues were owed. Dr Amireh Fakhouri (left) brought the claim on behalf of the junior doctors.(ABC News: Zena Chamas) On Wednesday, Dr Fakhouri told News Breakfast that for her, the case was never about the money. "I did this for a cultural change to make it better for the next generation of junior doctors, for my fellow medical students," she said. Dr Fakhouri was employed by NSW Health from 2015 to 2018, completing her internship and residency at Sydney's Westmead Hospital. She now works in general practice and says the few thousand dollars she might receive from the settlement is merely a bonus. "It's not going to make a difference to our income, but it's about the changes that we're making." Health Minister Ryan Park said he was disappointed the matter was not resolved by Coalition government when it was in power. He said NSW Health had made "significant inroads" in addressing the payment concerns but still needed to do better. "I'm not saying we fixed it, but we've made a big indent in the last 12 months," he said. NSW Health Minister Ryan Park acknowledged the health department still had changes to make.(ABC News: Marcus Stimson) Greens NSW health spokesperson Dr Amanda Cohn, who is a former GP and emergency doctor, said her own junior years were traumatic. "I became a GP for many reasons, but one of them was to get out of the brutally hierarchical hospital system that made it hard to turn up to work every day," Dr Cohn said. "This is a clear message that exploitation of the skill and commitment of healthcare workers is unacceptable and cannot continue." Dr Amanda Cohn said the settlement sent out a "clear message" in support of healthcare workers.(ABC North Coast: Emma Rennie) Dr Fakhouri's lawyer Hayden Stephens said concerns over the dangerous working conditions of junior doctors were ignored for years. "This landmark settlement now represents a seismic shift in the way junior doctors are treated in their workplace," Mr Stephens said. Maurice Blackburn principal Rebecca Gilsenan said the class action had already resulted in change. "Our clients report that NSW Health has already implemented several improvements in the workplace," Ms Gilsenan said. Provided the settlement is approved by the Supreme Court of NSW, a process for assessing the claims of current and former doctors will begin this year. Posted 24 Apr 202424 Apr 2024Wed 24 Apr 2024 at 2:16am, updated 24 Apr 202424 Apr 2024Wed 24 Apr 2024 at 2:55am'A big indent in the last 12 months'