Northamptonshire nurses confirm strike before Christmas
Northamptonshire nurses have confirmed when they will strike before Christmas. As many as 100,000 NHS nurses will walkout in the first of a series of NHS industrial actions in the coming weeks. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has announced the 76 NHS trusts and services that will see nurses down tools for planned strikes on December 15 and 20.
It insists the proportion of its 300,000 members taking part in walkouts will increase in January if the Government refuses to open pay negotiations reports the Daily Mirror. General Secretary Pat Cullen said: “Ministers have declined my offer of formal pay negotiations and instead chosen strike action. It has left us with no choice but to announce where our members will be going on strike in December. READ MORE: Kettering General Hospital rebuild to finally begin after Government gives green light
“Nursing is standing up for the profession and their patients. We’ve had enough of being taken for granted and being unable to provide the care patients deserve.” Strikes will take place at 53 trusts or services in England, at every NHS employer in Wales except one (12) and throughout Northern Ireland (11).
Possible strikes in Scotland are on hold after the devolved government reopened pay talks and a separate offer was made. East Midlands Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and East Midlands Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust will take part but Northampton General Hospital will not. NHS England has written a letter to all health leaders setting out priority services to maintain during strikes to enable “minimum Bank Holiday level of service”.
Priority services include cancer treatment, renal dialysis, mental health inpatient services and community services that enable hospital patients to be discharged. It stated that negotiations between trusts and local RCN reps must ensure “minimum staff levels are available to deliver emergency, immediate life, limb or organ-saving intervention”. There is already a record NHS treatment backlog of 7.1 million appointments in England alone and delays in emergency care.
A ballot of more than 15,000 ambulance workers in England and Wales who are members of the GMB closed Tuesday, with results likely to be announced in the next few days. Paramedics, cleaners, porters, pharmacy technicians and administrative staff are among more than 300,000 healthcare workers in the GMB trade union whose strike ballot closed on Friday. Midwives are holding a ballot for industrial action and junior doctors have said they will vote on a strike early next year.
Kettering General Hospital (Image: Kettering General Hospital)
It follows a decade of below-inflation pay awards for NHS staff and a 4 to 5% deal this year, which is well below RPI inflation of 12.6%.
The RCN is calling for a pay award 5% above inflation, while other unions are calling for pay to match inflation. “Ministers still have the power and the means to stop this by opening negotiations that address our dispute,” Ms Cullen added. Meanwhile, on Monday (November 28) Health Secretary Steve Barclay attended Downing Street for a meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and NHS leaders including NHS England boss Amanda Pritchard.
So far Mr Barclay has met with the RCN but refused to be drawn on pay. He said: “I am hugely grateful for the hard work and dedication of nurses and deeply regret some union members will be taking industrial action. “These are challenging times for everyone and the economic circumstances mean the RCN’s demands are not affordable.
Our priority is keeping patients safe.
The NHS has tried and tested plans in place to minimise disruption and ensure emergency services continue to operate.”
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