NHS unions vote on 5% pay deal after months of strikes but nurses can stop further strikes

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Unions representing more than a million NHS workers have voted to accept a 5 per cent pay rise from the government after months of strikes.

Health care staff covered by 14 unions will be given a raise in 2023-24, along with two one-off payments for last year, after a majority voted in favor of the deal in the NHS Staff Council today.

The largest health union, Unison and GMB, which represents ambulance staff and other healthcare workers, were the main organizations to influence the vote after its members voted yes last month.

However, the Royal College of Nursing and the union federation rejected the offer, meaning members of both unions could strike again later this year.

The RCN, which represents 280,000 nurses, midwives and nursing aides, has already said it will go ahead with a new ballot for the strike to take place between June and December. Health leaders have raised concerns about the “alarming” prospect of further strikes.

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: “While the results of the NHS Staff Council are very positive news overall, it is not the line in the sand that will allow the NHS and those who depend on its care to move with confidence from the threat of future strikes.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay described the agreement as “a good day for NHS staff and patients” and said he would implement the deal for all staff, even those who did not take up the offer.

The NHS may still face more strikes from junior doctors, who are not covered by this pay deal.

The RCN’s original mandate for strikes ran out on 1 May meaning that members must be required to vote again on whether to leave. It said a strike could happen “across the whole NHS”, which would be an escalation of the previous measure which only happened in about half of the trusts.

RCN General Secretary Pat Cullen said accepting the wage deal was “not the prevailing opinion of the nursing staff”. She told The Independent last week that the government faced a strike for years if it did not change the way it sets future wage levels.

The bank holiday weekend saw the biggest strikes yet from nurses, as emergency, critical care and cancer care workers took part for the first time.

“Health workers should not have taken action in the first place,” said Sarah Gorton, Unison’s director of health. “Proper pay talks last fall could have prevented health workers from losing money they cannot afford to lose.” The NHS and patients avoid months of upheaval.”

Sir Julian Hartley, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents NHS trusts, said: “Trust leaders are breathing a huge sigh of relief at today’s decision. We hope this will put an end to the most turbulent period of industrial strike action in NHS history.

“But the NHS is not out of the woods yet. Despite this outcome, no one can deny the protracted and mounting pressures facing staff, frontline services and the quality of care they can provide. We must not forget that the various unions were not unanimous in their vote today, Which reflects the strength of feeling among NHS staff.”

Barclay said: “I am delighted that the NHS Staff Council has voted to accept the wage offer, which shows that the majority of NHS staff agree that this is a fair and reasonable deal.

“I now intend to apply this to all employees in the Agenda for Change contract and where some unions may choose to remain in contention, hopefully their members – many of whom have voted to accept this offer – will realize that this is a fair outcome that has the support of their colleagues and decide it is time to end the strike. industrial.”

The agreement comes as the government is still at loggerheads with junior doctors who staged a four-day strike last month. The doctors’ union, the British Medical Association, initially called on the government to address the 26 per cent pay cut in real terms since 2008-09, meaning the government would have to agree to a 35 per cent increase this year. However, it has since indicated that 35 percent would be a starting point if the government opened negotiations with a “credible” counteroffer.

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