Nurses in Midlands province have issued a 48-hour ultimatum to authorities, warning they will down tools if their grievances over worsening working conditions and meagre salaries are not urgently addressed.

In a notice dated March 23 from the Zimbabwe Nurses Association (ZINA) information desk, health workers across districts including Gweru, Kwekwe, Zvishavane and Gokwe said they were "incapacitated by the volatile economic environment characterised by the loss of value of salaries and price disparities."

While acknowledging efforts to support citizens with healthcare, the nurses said their own welfare had sharply deteriorated.

"Health workers are severely affected by very low basic salaries... now below the living standard," the letter reads.

The workers also raised alarm over "unexplained deductions on March salaries" and the absence of payslips since April last year, which they said had worsened financial uncertainty.

Rising fuel costs have compounded the crisis, with some nurses reportedly walking long distances to work.

"Some are resorting to walk more than 8km to work due to increased transport fares," the letter states.

The nurses are demanding urgent salary adjustments, improved allowances and flexible working hours, warning they will not report for duty if their concerns are ignored.

The ultimatum comes amid growing unrest in the health sector. On Friday, nurses at Sally Mugabe Central Hospital staged a demonstration, followed by a similar protest at Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals on Monday, where staff abandoned wards demanding better pay.