Nurses and ambulance drivers could get their next pay rise three months early to end the spate of NHS strikes.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay today agreed to investigate unions’ proposals to backdate the April 2023/24 payroll to this month.
If health workers are offered a 5 per cent pay rise in April, a nurse earning an average of £33,338 will receive a £1,670 pay rise. Postponing it until January would mean an additional £417.
But the move was not enough to stave off the looming threat of further strikes. Ambulance drivers said they would continue a strike in parts of the country on Wednesday. Nurses said strikes planned for January 18 and 19 will continue. Another ambulance strike is planned for January 23.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay today agreed to consider union proposals which would see a three-month pay rise in healthcare in a bid to end the spate of NHS strikes
Whitehall sources questioned whether the Treasury would agree to sign off on the backdating plan, which would increase the cost of the pay deal by a quarter. Downing Street has warned that the deal will have to be funded from existing budgets, meaning services may have to be cut if rewards are significantly higher than the Treasury Department’s 3.5 per cent cut.
In a sign the government fears the disputes could drag on for months, ministers will continue to publish new strike legislation on Tuesday, requiring unions in key sectors such as emergency care and the rail industry to provide minimum services during strikes. The TUC will call a meeting of union leaders on Wednesday to discuss further co-ordination of strikes this winter in a bid to force ministers to back down. Senior union officials in the health, education and transport sectors met separately with ministers today after Rishi Sunak offered to have a “frank” discussion about pay. Government sources insisted the meetings had gone “positively”, but unions warned industrial action would continue.
Rachel Harrison of the GMB union said the talks fell “far short of what was needed”.
Nurses still have to go on 18 and 19 January and on 23 January there is an ambulance strike
She added: “There has been some commitment, but no concrete offer that would help resolve this dispute.” Joanne Galbraith-Marten, of the Royal College of Nursing, said there was “no resolution to our dispute in sight” and warned that the nurses’ strikes would continue next week.
She added: “Today’s meeting was bitterly disappointing. Ministers have a long way to go to avert the nurses’ strike next week.” Union negotiator Onay Kasab said Mr Barclay had warned that additional pay would depend on increased productivity – a notion he described as “an insult”.
He said: “This is absolutely ridiculous. We’re not talking about a factory here – we’re talking about people working way beyond their contract hours anyway just to get the job done because… they care so much.”
Sara Gorton, head of health at Unison, said the government’s willingness to discuss wages was a “huge step forward” but warned that “cold hard cash” was needed.
Rachel Harrison of the GMB union said the discussions were “far from sufficient”.
She added: “We actually managed to talk about pay – we didn’t make the tangible concessions we were hoping for to get the strikes called off later this week. But it was certainly progress when you’re in a room with the Secretary of State talking about wages.’
The Prime Minister previously fueled speculation that the government could offer striking public sector workers a one-off payment to settle disputes when he refused to rule out the move. Sunak said ministers “like to talk about wage demands … rooted in what is fair, what is responsible, what is affordable.”
But a government source said the prime minister was prepared to hold out for months if necessary, rather than give in to demands that could fuel inflation.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
