Category: nhs pay consultation

NHS pay key to cutting waiting lists, says UNISON

Commenting on the publication of the government’s evidence to the NHS pay review body, UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said:

“NHS workers should be getting this year’s wage rise in a matter of weeks. But because ministers were so late getting the pay review body process started and didn’t get their own evidence in on time, staff will now have to wait months. This simply isn’t good enough.

“Unless the government gets a handle on pay and gives health workers a fair wage rise this year, many experienced staff will continue to be lost from the service.

“It’s time ministers cast aside the outdated, lengthy and bureaucratic pay review body process.

“Getting health unions and employers in for pay talks would be the fastest, smartest way for the government to start to solve the staffing crisis.

“The government must negotiate a proper pay package for health workers to halt the steady drain of experience from the NHS.

“The public would much rather an efficient NHS, which can see and treat them quickly when they need its help, than have a few extra pennies in their pockets.

“The chancellor should forget about trying to fool the public with tax cuts next week. Instead, his focus should be investing in the NHS workforce to get waiting lists down and prompt treatment for the many people currently too ill to work.”

Notes to editors:
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.

Media contacts:
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk

 

The article NHS pay key to cutting waiting lists, says UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.

NHS pay key to cutting waiting lists, says UNISON

Commenting on the publication of the government’s evidence to the NHS pay review body, UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said:

“NHS workers should be getting this year’s wage rise in a matter of weeks. But because ministers were so late getting the pay review body process started and didn’t get their own evidence in on time, staff will now have to wait months. This simply isn’t good enough.

“Unless the government gets a handle on pay and gives health workers a fair wage rise this year, many experienced staff will continue to be lost from the service.

“It’s time ministers cast aside the outdated, lengthy and bureaucratic pay review body process.

“Getting health unions and employers in for pay talks would be the fastest, smartest way for the government to start to solve the staffing crisis.

“The government must negotiate a proper pay package for health workers to halt the steady drain of experience from the NHS.

“The public would much rather an efficient NHS, which can see and treat them quickly when they need its help, than have a few extra pennies in their pockets.

“The chancellor should forget about trying to fool the public with tax cuts next week. Instead, his focus should be investing in the NHS workforce to get waiting lists down and prompt treatment for the many people currently too ill to work.”

Notes to editors:
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.

Media contacts:
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk

 

The article NHS pay key to cutting waiting lists, says UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.

UNISON health workers vote to accept NHS pay offer

NHS workers who belong to UNISON have voted decisively to accept the pay offer from the government, says the union today (Friday).

The consultation of 288,000 NHS workers across England closed at 3pm this afternoon. Almost three quarters (74%) voted to accept the offer, and 26% to reject.

Turnout in the consultation exercise was 53%, with 152,329 votes cast. Of these 112,458 voted yes, and 39,871 no.

NHS staff across England have been taking part in the online consultation exercise since the end of March.

UNISON had recommended acceptance of the offer, which came out of the pay talks involving unions, employers and ministers earlier that month.

The offer covers two pay years – an additional one-off amount for 2022/23 and a 5% wage rise (10.4% for the lowest paid) for 2023/24.

UNISON head of health Sara Gorton said: “Clearly health workers would have wanted more, but this was the best that could be achieved through negotiation.

“Over the past few weeks, health workers have weighed up what’s on offer. They’ve opted for the certainty of getting the extra cash in their pockets soon.

“It’s a pity it took several months of strike action before the government would commit to talks. Unions told ministers last summer the £1,400 pay rise wasn’t enough to stop staff leaving the NHS, nor to prevent strikes. But they didn’t want to listen.

“Instead, health workers were forced to strike, losing money they could ill afford. The NHS and its patients suffered months of unnecessary disruption.

“Other unions are still consulting so the full picture won’t emerge until the end of the month. UNISON will be urging the government to ensure NHS workers get the wage rises they’ve voted for at the earliest opportunity.

“This vote might end UNISON’s dispute, but it doesn’t solve the wider staffing emergency affecting every part of the NHS. Now, the government must work with unions to bring about a sustained programme of investment in the workforce.

“Lessons must also be learned. The mistakes of the past few months cannot be repeated. It’s time for a whole new approach to setting pay across the NHS.”

Notes to editors:
–The non-consolidated payment for 2022/23 is worth between £1,655 and £3,789 to health workers in England. This is equal to 8.2% for the lowest paid and around 6% for nurses, midwives and other colleagues on band 5 of Agenda for Change. It’s in addition to the £1,400 NHS staff received for 2022/23 last September. The 2023/24 wage rise is worth at least £1,065 and would raise the lowest hourly rate in the NHS in England to £11.45 an hour, or £22,383 a year.
–Other unions that took part in the pay talks are still in the process of consulting their members. All the results will be in by the end of the month. The NHS staff council is due to meet on 2 May and report back to the government.
–In Scotland, UNISON members have voted to accept the Holyrood government’s latest pay offer. Talks in Wales are ongoing, with announcements expected soon. NHS staff in Northern Ireland have only just received the £1,400 paid to their English colleagues last September. The hope is that developments in England will prove enough to unlock the ongoing dispute in Northern Ireland.

Media contacts:
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk

The article UNISON health workers vote to accept NHS pay offer first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Decisive outcome as UNISON members vote to accept NHS pay offer in England

In a record turnout for health members in UNISON, over 150,000 members voted in a consultation on the new NHS pay offer, with 74% of these voting to accept.

That means over 112,000 members working in every part of the NHS voted to accept, put cash in their pockets and give certainty about pay for the next year.

Results:

  • 74% voted Yes, to accept the offer
  • 26% voted No, to reject the offer
  • 53% turnout, with 152,329 votes cast

The vote comes after months of strike action across the country by UNISON members, whose courage and determination to repeatedly join picket lines has demonstrated a simple fact – industrial action works.

Their decisive action forced the ministers to the table and allowed negotiators the opportunity to squeeze extra money out of the government. The resulting offer amounts to a doubling of the cash value of the pay award in 2022, as well as permanently increasing pay by 5% for this year.

The dispute has sent a stark warning to the government that it must drastically alter its approach to the recruitment and retention crisis. It has also shown that ignoring NHS staff for months on end, refusing to discuss their pay and failing to address their serious concerns about the impact on patient care won’t make the issues go away.

Many of the other unions that joined UNISON in pay talks with the government are still in the process of consulting their members. UNISON is due to meet with the joint unions on 2 May to declare the union’s position, hear what other union members across the NHS have decided, and deliver an answer to the government.

Until then, it won’t be known whether the offer will be jointly accepted, and so there is no indication about how or when the lump sum and pay rise would be implemented.

The results of the consultation also come just before UNISON’s annual health conference which opens in Bournemouth on Monday. There, delegates will debate the next steps in NHS pay and set the union’s priorities and agenda for the coming year.

The article Decisive outcome as UNISON members vote to accept NHS pay offer in England first appeared on the UNISON National site.