They were preparing packs needed by hospice night staff when visiting people to support them in their homes.
The striking staff members said they had planned to undertake volunteer gardening work at the hospice, but switched to indoor duties because of wet weather.
PSA officials said about 4000 PSA members from Inland Revenue and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) held a second period of national strike action, after an earlier strike on July 9, and about 90 Dunedin PSA members, mainly at Inland Revenue, also took part.
PSA members walked off the job at 1pm for a two-hour strike over what PSA officials termed ``fair pay systems and a modest across-the-board pay increase''.
PSA members held rallies and speeches in some places, including Christchurch, and voluntary community work was undertaken in several other centres, including Dunedin, Invercargill and Palmerston North, officials said.
