U.K. Hospital Staff Vote On Strike Action Over Pay

Around 350,000 public hospital staff in England, Northern Ireland and Wales are deciding whether or not to strike over pay conditions.

Members of the Unison union, including nurses, cleaners, paramedics and porters, have been asked to vote in the action which calls for better pay in the face of high inflation.

Many National Health Service workers were awarded £1,400 in the summer to help them cope with the country’s cost of living crisis. But union leaders argue this is well below inflation.

The award amounted to a 4.75%-plus pay increase on average, with more for the lowest paid staff according to the BBC. Inflation — as measured by the retail price index — stands at roughly 12%.

In Scotland, staff were offered £2,200 following a similar strike ballot. The vote was called off part-way and members will now be consulted on the pay deal.

A similar ballot of Scottish Unison members was paused after a new pay deal was offered.

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said that striking is “the last thing dedicated health workers want to do, adding: “But with services in such a dire state, and staff struggling to deliver for patients with fewer colleagues than ever, many feel like the end of the road has been reached.”

Staffing shortages are a major factor in concurrent crises facing the country’s healthcare system. Many patients are facing extremely long waits for both emergency and non-urgent care.

If a strike does take place, emergency care would be protected.

McAnea said: “The NHS is losing experienced staff at alarming rates. Health workers are leaving for work that pays better and doesn’t take such a toll on them and their families. If this continues, the health service will never conquer the backlog and treat the millions desperately awaiting care.

“It feels like the NHS is in the last chance saloon. But a vote for industrial action might be the jolt that convinces ministers to make the NHS the priority they say it is.”

She added that strikes, which would add major pressure to an already overstretched system, “are not inevitable.”

Members of other health unions, including the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives, are also considering strike action.

The RCN’s ballot will close next week. Unison’s will close on November 25 in England and Wales and on November 18 in Northern Ireland.

The government says its existing pay increase comes on top of a rise of 3% for NHS staff last year. Other public sector staff, on the other hand, had their pay frozen.

A spokesperson told the BBC that the government valued health staff and asked them to “carefully consider” how a strike would affect patients.