Dudley MP raises Mitie strikers’ struggle in the Commons

UNISON members employed by private contractor Mitie at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, in the West Midlands, received support yesterday from local MP Marco Longhi, in their fight to receive a government mandated COVID-19 bonus payment that has been paid to non-medical staff who are directly employed by the NHS.

Having already taken three days of strike action, they will be striking again on 25 and 27 March.

Conservative MP Mr Longhi asked the leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, whether she would support the workers.

He said: “I would like to place on record my thanks to the workers employed by Mitie during the pandemic and encourage the Department of Health and Social Care to work with me and resolve this issue.”

Ms Mordaunt responded that extra funding was being made available for private contractors such as Mitie to apply for money for the extra payment for those not directly employed by the health service.

She added that she would make sure the individual case of the Dudley hospital workers is looked at in a bid to resolve the problem.

Denise Stevens, a domestic at the hospital and a UNISON steward (pictured above on the right), said: “All we are asking for is the same COVID-19 bonus payment that NHS colleagues received last year.

“The support from the local Black Country community has been huge on strike days and throughout this dispute.

“We have received support from the Dudley North MP, Marco Longhi, as well as Labour politicians in the area, demonstrating that our support is widespread and from across the political spectrum.”

Regional organiser Ollie Hopkins added: “Mitie say they can’t afford to pay the bonus, but they have found the money to bus in strike-breaking workers, from Cumbria to Kent, with food provided, paid travel time, accommodation and a voucher offered for covering the strike action.

“The cruel irony, that Mitie say they can’t afford to pay low-paid workers the COVID bonus but can find the money for the strike breaking, has not been lost on the workers.

“As Marco Longhi MP said in Parliament, Mitie wants the taxpayer to cover the payments.

“But with millions in profits, Mitie should stop dragging their feet and waiting for the government to bail them out. Their CEO’s bonus was bigger than the total cost of the 450 Dudley health workers bonuses combined, so they have the money to end this dispute in an instant.”

The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay

The article Dudley MP raises Mitie strikers’ struggle in the Commons first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Dudley MP raises Mitie strikers’ struggle in the Commons

UNISON members employed by private contractor Mitie at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, in the West Midlands, received support yesterday from local MP Marco Longhi, in their fight to receive a government mandated COVID-19 bonus payment that has been paid to non-medical staff who are directly employed by the NHS.

Having already taken three days of strike action, they will be striking again on 25 and 27 March.

Conservative MP Mr Longhi asked the leader of the House of Commons, Penny Mordaunt, whether she would support the workers.

He said: “I would like to place on record my thanks to the workers employed by Mitie during the pandemic and encourage the Department of Health and Social Care to work with me and resolve this issue.”

Ms Mordaunt responded that extra funding was being made available for private contractors such as Mitie to apply for money for the extra payment for those not directly employed by the health service.

She added that she would make sure the individual case of the Dudley hospital workers is looked at in a bid to resolve the problem.

Denise Stevens, a domestic at the hospital and a UNISON steward (pictured above on the right), said: “All we are asking for is the same COVID-19 bonus payment that NHS colleagues received last year.

“The support from the local Black Country community has been huge on strike days and throughout this dispute.

“We have received support from the Dudley North MP, Marco Longhi, as well as Labour politicians in the area, demonstrating that our support is widespread and from across the political spectrum.”

Regional organiser Ollie Hopkins added: “Mitie say they can’t afford to pay the bonus, but they have found the money to bus in strike-breaking workers, from Cumbria to Kent, with food provided, paid travel time, accommodation and a voucher offered for covering the strike action.

“The cruel irony, that Mitie say they can’t afford to pay low-paid workers the COVID bonus but can find the money for the strike breaking, has not been lost on the workers.

“As Marco Longhi MP said in Parliament, Mitie wants the taxpayer to cover the payments.

“But with millions in profits, Mitie should stop dragging their feet and waiting for the government to bail them out. Their CEO’s bonus was bigger than the total cost of the 450 Dudley health workers bonuses combined, so they have the money to end this dispute in an instant.”

The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay

The article Dudley MP raises Mitie strikers’ struggle in the Commons first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Harassment, abuse and discrimination have no place in a 21st century NHS

Commenting on the annual NHS staff survey published today (Thursday), UNISON acting deputy head of health Alan Lofthouse said:

“Harassment or ill-treatment of any kind is simply wrong. NHS staff must be able to get on with their jobs without the fear of abuse, assault, or ill-treatment from bigots, racists and sexual predators.

“The number of sexually motivated incidents is shocking. Health and emergency workers caring for people and saving lives shouldn’t ever have to suffer attacks, unwanted advances or inappropriate comments.

“Employers need to do more to ensure everyone working in the NHS, using its services or visiting patients knows how to behave and what will happen to them if they don’t.

“That means senior managers working closely with unions and staff to make the NHS workplace a safer, kinder, fairer and nicer place to work. One that’s completely free from discrimination, violence and harassment.

“The chancellor says he wants the NHS to become more productive. But the lived experiences of staff, squeezed resources and record low pay is forcing many to leave the jobs they love.

“With more than one in five NHS workers admitting they want to quit in the next year, the government needs to tackle wage rates right away. Staff satisfaction with pay is almost the worst it’s ever been. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out why.

“The NHS simply couldn’t function without its workers. That’s why it’s so important staff are rewarded properly with a decent pay rise when it’s due in couple of weeks.”

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

The article Harassment, abuse and discrimination have no place in a 21st century NHS first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Harassment, abuse and discrimination have no place in a 21st century NHS

Commenting on the annual NHS staff survey published today (Thursday), UNISON acting deputy head of health Alan Lofthouse said:

“Harassment or ill-treatment of any kind is simply wrong. NHS staff must be able to get on with their jobs without the fear of abuse, assault, or ill-treatment from bigots, racists and sexual predators.

“The number of sexually motivated incidents is shocking. Health and emergency workers caring for people and saving lives shouldn’t ever have to suffer attacks, unwanted advances or inappropriate comments.

“Employers need to do more to ensure everyone working in the NHS, using its services or visiting patients knows how to behave and what will happen to them if they don’t.

“That means senior managers working closely with unions and staff to make the NHS workplace a safer, kinder, fairer and nicer place to work. One that’s completely free from discrimination, violence and harassment.

“The chancellor says he wants the NHS to become more productive. But the lived experiences of staff, squeezed resources and record low pay is forcing many to leave the jobs they love.

“With more than one in five NHS workers admitting they want to quit in the next year, the government needs to tackle wage rates right away. Staff satisfaction with pay is almost the worst it’s ever been. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out why.

“The NHS simply couldn’t function without its workers. That’s why it’s so important staff are rewarded properly with a decent pay rise when it’s due in couple of weeks.”

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

The article Harassment, abuse and discrimination have no place in a 21st century NHS first appeared on the UNISON National site.

The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay

It’s a classic case of David v Goliath, with part-time hospital cleaner ‘Dudley Denise’ facing up to Mitie CEO ‘Miami Phil’. But in Denise’s corner, she and her colleagues have UNISON.

And when a group of them visited UNISON Centre on Wednesday, general secretary Christina McAnea (pictured above) made sure they knew the union is proud of them and that they’ll get all the support they need.

The members, who are employed by private contractor Mitie at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, walked out on their first day of strike action at 5am this morning (Friday), along with colleagues in UNITE.

The company continues to refuse to pay a COVID bonus payment that the government agreed last year as part of a wider settlement to the NHS dispute.

This is despite Mitie being signed up to Agenda for Change, which means members of the NHS workforce that it employs should not be treated differently to those employed directly by the service.

The bonus would be worth around £1,600 for the lowest-paid staff.

There’s long been a perception among some people that non-medical staff in the health service are not as ‘important’ as the medical staff. But as was crystal clear from a round-table conversation with Christina, the health service cannot run without them.

A placard for Mitie workers saying 'where's our pay' in contrast to the company's profits

From porters to cleaners, from cooks to switchboard operators and those providing sterile services, not only are they key workers in the NHS, they were key workers throughout the pandemic – and their experiences of that were no different to those of medical staff.

The group spoke of porters not seeing newborn family members for months because of the risk of passing on the virus; of cleaners following trolleys taking the COVID dead to the hospital morgue, cleaning as they went.

They recalled the double-figure queues of ambulances waiting outside the same morgue, along with the colleagues they themselves lost. And of course, there was a lack of PPE.

“When it was over, we were given a certificate and a badge,” says Rich. “But it will live with us for the rest of our lives.”

Linda adds: “It’s not about the money. It’s about the recognition for what we did during COVID.”

As employees, they have received emails telling them that the company couldn’t afford to pay the bonus. As “token shareholders” in Mitie, they have also received emails telling them that the company was making “record profits”.

Last November, Mitie announced mighty half-year profits of £28m (up 24%) and has forecast a full-year profit of £190m.

The company handed boss Phil Bentley a reported pay packet of £5.9m, with a bonus of £980,000. The bonus alone is more than the sum that Mitie itself calculates would be needed to pay the staff their deserved bonuses.

Mr Bentley formerly ran Cable and Wireless in Florida and he has been dubbed ‘Miami Phil’ by the strikers.

There’s no record of whether he came up against any Miami vice during his sojourn in the Sunshine State, but here, he’s up against ‘Dudley Denise’, a UNISON steward with over 37 years of experience working at Russells Hall (pictured below).

Denise, a Mitie worker and UNISON steward

“I went there as a young girl – and I’ve done everything there,” she explains. “I did 22 years as a porter; I’ve done supervising there – I was a supervisor for 14 years.

“And then I lost my husband and I moved onto mornings – I’d always worked evenings because of the children. And now I’m cleaning where all the managers are,” she adds with a chuckle.

The group had told Christina that they were “like a family”. Does Denise think that is why they’re so together in this dispute?

“I think we’ve all been there so many years, from young girls – in our sixties now! Some of my friends have lost their husbands or divorced, but we’ve always kept our ties. We’ve always done Christmas parties, birthday parties; we’ve always had that closeness – we just get on great.”

Mitie worker and UNISON rep Rich

Rich (above) has been a porter at the hospital for over 16 years. He’s currently the Mitie lead steward and chair of the Dudley group for UNISON.

“I think it’s because of our shared experiences during COVID – and over the last 10, 15 years. It’s like a family of us at the hospital. I’ve been to weddings, funerals; we’ve been to baptisms. We go out drinking together, we go out partying together – we celebrate everything together.”

But Rich thinks the bonus is the straw that’s broken the camel’s back.

“I think it’s just the fact of … we’ve just had enough now. Since Mitie have come in, things have been … shall we say, not so good. They’ve tried to make a lot of changes which they say are for the better, but we know they’re not. They’re just doing things to line their own pockets, basically, and forgetting about the workers.

“The whole £1,600 COVID payment has just unified people even more, to be fair.”

After lunch at UNISON Centre, the group visited Mitie HQ at the Shard, before going on to Parliament, where they met Marco Longhi, the Conservative MP for Dudley North, who told the group that he supported them and that the issue was one of fairness.

Mitie workers at Westminster

Taking the fight to Westminster

He has already written to Victoria Atkins, the secretary of state for health and social care, to ask that the response to private employers that have applied to the government for funding to pay the bonus – including Mitie – is speeded up.

Mitie workers meet Marco Longhi MP

With Marco Longhi MP

Mr Longhi also agreed to write to Mitie’s CEO focusing on reputational damage – and he added that his personal view is that Mitie should really be paying the money out of the company’s own funds.

From Westminster, it was back to Dudley. Regional organiser Ollie Hopkins said the group were “feeling so positive and energised. They all got so much out of the day and really felt enthused by seeing the full support from the union that they have”.

And who’d bet against ‘Dudley Denise’ and her colleagues in their fight with ‘Miami Phil’ and his corporate Goliath?

The article The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay first appeared on the UNISON National site.

The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay

It’s a classic case of David v Goliath, with part-time hospital cleaner ‘Dudley Denise’ facing up to Mitie CEO ‘Miami Phil’. But in Denise’s corner, she and her colleagues have UNISON.

And when a group of them visited UNISON Centre on Wednesday, general secretary Christina McAnea (pictured above) made sure they knew the union is proud of them and that they’ll get all the support they need.

The members, who are employed by private contractor Mitie at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, walked out on their first day of strike action at 5am this morning (Friday), along with colleagues in UNITE.

The company continues to refuse to pay a COVID bonus payment that the government agreed last year as part of a wider settlement to the NHS dispute.

This is despite Mitie being signed up to Agenda for Change, which means members of the NHS workforce that it employs should not be treated differently to those employed directly by the service.

The bonus would be worth around £1,600 for the lowest-paid staff.

There’s long been a perception among some people that non-medical staff in the health service are not as ‘important’ as the medical staff. But as was crystal clear from a round-table conversation with Christina, the health service cannot run without them.

A placard for Mitie workers saying 'where's our pay' in contrast to the company's profits

From porters to cleaners, from cooks to switchboard operators and those providing sterile services, not only are they key workers in the NHS, they were key workers throughout the pandemic – and their experiences of that were no different to those of medical staff.

The group spoke of porters not seeing newborn family members for months because of the risk of passing on the virus; of cleaners following trolleys taking the COVID dead to the hospital morgue, cleaning as they went.

They recalled the double-figure queues of ambulances waiting outside the same morgue, along with the colleagues they themselves lost. And of course, there was a lack of PPE.

“When it was over, we were given a certificate and a badge,” says Rich. “But it will live with us for the rest of our lives.”

Linda adds: “It’s not about the money. It’s about the recognition for what we did during COVID.”

As employees, they have received emails telling them that the company couldn’t afford to pay the bonus. As “token shareholders” in Mitie, they have also received emails telling them that the company was making “record profits”.

Last November, Mitie announced mighty half-year profits of £28m (up 24%) and has forecast a full-year profit of £190m.

The company handed boss Phil Bentley a reported pay packet of £5.9m, with a bonus of £980,000. The bonus alone is more than the sum that Mitie itself calculates would be needed to pay the staff their deserved bonuses.

Mr Bentley formerly ran Cable and Wireless in Florida and he has been dubbed ‘Miami Phil’ by the strikers.

There’s no record of whether he came up against any Miami vice during his sojourn in the Sunshine State, but here, he’s up against ‘Dudley Denise’, a UNISON steward with over 37 years of experience working at Russells Hall (pictured below).

Denise, a Mitie worker and UNISON steward

“I went there as a young girl – and I’ve done everything there,” she explains. “I did 22 years as a porter; I’ve done supervising there – I was a supervisor for 14 years.

“And then I lost my husband and I moved onto mornings – I’d always worked evenings because of the children. And now I’m cleaning where all the managers are,” she adds with a chuckle.

The group had told Christina that they were “like a family”. Does Denise think that is why they’re so together in this dispute?

“I think we’ve all been there so many years, from young girls – in our sixties now! Some of my friends have lost their husbands or divorced, but we’ve always kept our ties. We’ve always done Christmas parties, birthday parties; we’ve always had that closeness – we just get on great.”

Mitie worker and UNISON rep Rich

Rich (above) has been a porter at the hospital for over 16 years. He’s currently the Mitie lead steward and chair of the Dudley group for UNISON.

“I think it’s because of our shared experiences during COVID – and over the last 10, 15 years. It’s like a family of us at the hospital. I’ve been to weddings, funerals; we’ve been to baptisms. We go out drinking together, we go out partying together – we celebrate everything together.”

But Rich thinks the bonus is the straw that’s broken the camel’s back.

“I think it’s just the fact of … we’ve just had enough now. Since Mitie have come in, things have been … shall we say, not so good. They’ve tried to make a lot of changes which they say are for the better, but we know they’re not. They’re just doing things to line their own pockets, basically, and forgetting about the workers.

“The whole £1,600 COVID payment has just unified people even more, to be fair.”

After lunch at UNISON Centre, the group visited Mitie HQ at the Shard, before going on to Parliament, where they met Marco Longhi, the Conservative MP for Dudley North, who told the group that he supported them and that the issue was one of fairness.

Mitie workers at Westminster

Taking the fight to Westminster

He has already written to Victoria Atkins, the secretary of state for health and social care, to ask that the response to private employers that have applied to the government for funding to pay the bonus – including Mitie – is speeded up.

Mitie workers meet Marco Longhi MP

With Marco Longhi MP

Mr Longhi also agreed to write to Mitie’s CEO focusing on reputational damage – and he added that his personal view is that Mitie should really be paying the money out of the company’s own funds.

From Westminster, it was back to Dudley. Regional organiser Ollie Hopkins said the group were “feeling so positive and energised. They all got so much out of the day and really felt enthused by seeing the full support from the union that they have”.

And who’d bet against ‘Dudley Denise’ and her colleagues in their fight with ‘Miami Phil’ and his corporate Goliath?

The article The NHS workers in a Mitie fight for fair pay first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Put pay right and start to solve the NHS’ many problems

A proper pay rise for NHS staff in England this year is essential if there is to be any hope of filling the huge vacancies hole and stopping waiting lists from spiralling, says UNISON today (Friday).

The union – representing ambulance workers, nurses, cleaners, medical secretaries, occupational therapists, porters and a whole host of other NHS staff – has urged Victoria Atkins to convene pay talks.

UNISON says this would be the best way to agree the wage rise due in April, improve the experience of patients and avoid a repeat of last year’s strike action.

UNISON, which is the biggest union in the NHS, has this week written to the health secretary setting out the case for sustained investment in the workforce.

UNISON has also notified the acting chair of the NHS pay review body (PRB) of its decision to do this rather than submitting evidence. This is because the union says the PRB process takes too long, and is neither sufficiently independent, nor fit for purpose.

Health workers are disappointed by the government’s decision to fall back once again on the lengthy review-body process to set pay, says UNISON. The very fact Victoria Atkins didn’t get the PRB ball rolling until December means staff already know they won’t be getting this year’s wage increase on time, adds the union.

But pay is of real concern. In a recent UNISON survey, over a third (38%) of health workers said they were unable to concentrate at work because they were worrying about their finances.

The cost-of-living crisis has hit working families hard, and health workers are no exception, says UNISON. In the same poll, more than two-thirds (68%) said their rent or mortgage has risen considerably over the past year. And more than half (53%) expect their housing costs to go up significantly in the coming 12 months.

As a result, over a third (35%) of NHS staff told UNISON they had to take on extra shifts to get by, adding to an increased risk of stress and burnout, the union warns.

More worryingly, says UNISON, increased housing costs have already prompted three in ten (31%) to start looking for better-paying jobs outside the NHS, raising fears that staffing shortages could yet worsen.

Vacancy rates remain stubbornly high across every part of the NHS in England, says UNISON. With trusts more than 110,000 staff short, the impact on workload, morale and patient care is huge, adds the union.

UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said: “There’s a staffing emergency across every part of the NHS in England. There are simply too few health workers to meet increasing demand. That leaves staff stretched ever more thinly as they try desperately to deliver quality care to patients.

“It took many days of strikes to get last year’s pay rise agreed, but since then inflation has failed to fall as far, or as fast, as experts predicted. With the lump sums that helped settle the dispute no longer part of their pay packets, health workers now think they got a raw deal and will expect a better settlement in 2024.

“As it stands, NHS staff on the lowest pay band will be earning just a penny an hour above the minimum wage when it rises in April and their salaries are well short of the real living wage.

“If the government fails to put pay right, the picture looks bleak for the NHS and everyone needing its care. Decent wage increases this year won’t solve all the health service’s problems, but they could help keep experienced employees in their jobs and attract new recruits.

“With more staff at its disposal, the NHS would be in a much better place to get backlogs, waits and delays down. That can only be good news for patients who will be seen and treated more quickly.”

As well as a decent pay rise for 2024/25, UNISON wants to see NHS staff on the correct salary bands, and a push for a shorter working week. While this may not be achievable overnight, a better work-life balance would ease employee stress and burnout, help retain staff and reduce the need for costly agency workers, says UNISON.

And all too often NHS staff are working above their salary bands, it adds. There should be yearly reviews to ensure people are getting the correct rate for the job*. Otherwise, health workers will feel increasingly taken for granted and more likely to leave for workplaces where they’ll be better appreciated, warns UNISON.

Notes to editors:
– The UNISON survey was conducted online last autumn and around 40,000 responses were received from NHS staff in England.
Put NHS pay right, UNISON’s case for investing in the NHS workforce, can be found here.
– The minimum wage is rising to £11.44 an hour in April. Staff on the bottom of Agenda for Change band 2 are currently on an hourly rate of £11.45. The real living wage is £12 an hour (£13.15 in London).
– *Healthcare assistants tend to be on band 2 but regularly undertake complex tasks more in line with the higher band 3 salary. UNISON campaigns have already seen thousands of healthcare assistants regraded on to higher salaries and many others are currently pushing for their pay to be similarly corrected.
– In Northern Ireland, health unions are about to enter intensive talks over the 2023/24 pay rise, with the PRB expected to also make recommendations for their pay for 2024/25. In Wales, the health minister only issued a PRB remit on 30 January and UNISON expects to set out a similar case for investment in the NHS workforce there. In Scotland, unions have submitted a pay claim and hope talks will start soon.
– 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
A
nthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk

The article Put pay right and start to solve the NHS’ many problems first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Put pay right and start to solve the NHS’ many problems

A proper pay rise for NHS staff in England this year is essential if there is to be any hope of filling the huge vacancies hole and stopping waiting lists from spiralling, says UNISON today (Friday).

The union – representing ambulance workers, nurses, cleaners, medical secretaries, occupational therapists, porters and a whole host of other NHS staff – has urged Victoria Atkins to convene pay talks.

UNISON says this would be the best way to agree the wage rise due in April, improve the experience of patients and avoid a repeat of last year’s strike action.

UNISON, which is the biggest union in the NHS, has this week written to the health secretary setting out the case for sustained investment in the workforce.

UNISON has also notified the acting chair of the NHS pay review body (PRB) of its decision to do this rather than submitting evidence. This is because the union says the PRB process takes too long, and is neither sufficiently independent, nor fit for purpose.

Health workers are disappointed by the government’s decision to fall back once again on the lengthy review-body process to set pay, says UNISON. The very fact Victoria Atkins didn’t get the PRB ball rolling until December means staff already know they won’t be getting this year’s wage increase on time, adds the union.

But pay is of real concern. In a recent UNISON survey, over a third (38%) of health workers said they were unable to concentrate at work because they were worrying about their finances.

The cost-of-living crisis has hit working families hard, and health workers are no exception, says UNISON. In the same poll, more than two-thirds (68%) said their rent or mortgage has risen considerably over the past year. And more than half (53%) expect their housing costs to go up significantly in the coming 12 months.

As a result, over a third (35%) of NHS staff told UNISON they had to take on extra shifts to get by, adding to an increased risk of stress and burnout, the union warns.

More worryingly, says UNISON, increased housing costs have already prompted three in ten (31%) to start looking for better-paying jobs outside the NHS, raising fears that staffing shortages could yet worsen.

Vacancy rates remain stubbornly high across every part of the NHS in England, says UNISON. With trusts more than 110,000 staff short, the impact on workload, morale and patient care is huge, adds the union.

UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said: “There’s a staffing emergency across every part of the NHS in England. There are simply too few health workers to meet increasing demand. That leaves staff stretched ever more thinly as they try desperately to deliver quality care to patients.

“It took many days of strikes to get last year’s pay rise agreed, but since then inflation has failed to fall as far, or as fast, as experts predicted. With the lump sums that helped settle the dispute no longer part of their pay packets, health workers now think they got a raw deal and will expect a better settlement in 2024.

“As it stands, NHS staff on the lowest pay band will be earning just a penny an hour above the minimum wage when it rises in April and their salaries are well short of the real living wage.

“If the government fails to put pay right, the picture looks bleak for the NHS and everyone needing its care. Decent wage increases this year won’t solve all the health service’s problems, but they could help keep experienced employees in their jobs and attract new recruits.

“With more staff at its disposal, the NHS would be in a much better place to get backlogs, waits and delays down. That can only be good news for patients who will be seen and treated more quickly.”

As well as a decent pay rise for 2024/25, UNISON wants to see NHS staff on the correct salary bands, and a push for a shorter working week. While this may not be achievable overnight, a better work-life balance would ease employee stress and burnout, help retain staff and reduce the need for costly agency workers, says UNISON.

And all too often NHS staff are working above their salary bands, it adds. There should be yearly reviews to ensure people are getting the correct rate for the job*. Otherwise, health workers will feel increasingly taken for granted and more likely to leave for workplaces where they’ll be better appreciated, warns UNISON.

Notes to editors:
– The UNISON survey was conducted online last autumn and around 40,000 responses were received from NHS staff in England.
Put NHS pay right, UNISON’s case for investing in the NHS workforce, can be found here.
– The minimum wage is rising to £11.44 an hour in April. Staff on the bottom of Agenda for Change band 2 are currently on an hourly rate of £11.45. The real living wage is £12 an hour (£13.15 in London).
– *Healthcare assistants tend to be on band 2 but regularly undertake complex tasks more in line with the higher band 3 salary. UNISON campaigns have already seen thousands of healthcare assistants regraded on to higher salaries and many others are currently pushing for their pay to be similarly corrected.
– In Northern Ireland, health unions are about to enter intensive talks over the 2023/24 pay rise, with the PRB expected to also make recommendations for their pay for 2024/25. In Wales, the health minister only issued a PRB remit on 30 January and UNISON expects to set out a similar case for investment in the NHS workforce there. In Scotland, unions have submitted a pay claim and hope talks will start soon.
– 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
A
nthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk

The article Put pay right and start to solve the NHS’ many problems first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Government inaction to blame for ambulance handover delays, says UNISON

Responding to the publication today (Thursday) of NHS England data on ambulance handover delays, UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said:

“Ambulance handover delays are a critical sign the NHS is struggling to cope with unbearable demand.

“The pressure is on all year round especially in the winter and government inaction is to blame.

“Ministers need to wake up and start fixing the problems in the NHS. Top of that list must be solving the staffing crisis.

“Services are stretched to breaking point because there are too few staff. Highly skilled employees have had enough and are leaving for better-paid, less stressful work elsewhere.

“If the government carries on burying its head in the sand, nothing will improve and patients continue to suffer.”

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.ukFatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk

The article Government inaction to blame for ambulance handover delays, says UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.

Government inaction to blame for ambulance handover delays, says UNISON

Responding to the publication today (Thursday) of NHS England data on ambulance handover delays, UNISON acting head of health Helga Pile said:

“Ambulance handover delays are a critical sign the NHS is struggling to cope with unbearable demand.

“The pressure is on all year round especially in the winter and government inaction is to blame.

“Ministers need to wake up and start fixing the problems in the NHS. Top of that list must be solving the staffing crisis.

“Services are stretched to breaking point because there are too few staff. Highly skilled employees have had enough and are leaving for better-paid, less stressful work elsewhere.

“If the government carries on burying its head in the sand, nothing will improve and patients continue to suffer.”

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.ukFatima Ayad M: 07508 080383 E: f.ayad@unison.co.uk

The article Government inaction to blame for ambulance handover delays, says UNISON first appeared on the UNISON National site.