She doubted the industry would be able to attract enough workers if they did not have the security of a collective agreement, because pay was low.
Mrs Galloway was yesterday on the picket line with Redroofs Rest Home workers and their supporters.
Along with hundreds of other Oceania workers around the country, the Dunedin workers were on strike from 5am to 9am, and then from 4pm to 6pm.
Workers are seeking a 3.5% pay rise and protection of their overtime rates.
They are protesting against a 1% pay offer from Oceania, which has offered another 2% staggered over 15 months.
Oceania Group chief executive Guy Eady said, via a spokesman, the company was not trying to make workers casual, and sought a collective agreement with permanent staff.
"We're disappointed that the unions have continued with strike action [yesterday] when we had already offered and arranged to continue our negotiations [today]. We hoped the unions would have called off [the] strike as a gesture of good faith and to show a genuine intent to settle the matter."
Mediation resumes today between Oceania and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation and SFWU. Stop-work meetings were planned next Wednesday at 57 Oceania rest-homes.
