Pay rise for thousands of NHS staff already overdue

The government has let down hundreds of thousands of “demoralised” NHS staff after yet again failing to honour the due date for their annual pay increase, says UNISON today (Friday). The union has written to health secretary Victoria Atkins to say government delays are to blame for workers not receiving their 2024/25 wage rise, which was due on Easter Monday. With the cost-of-living crisis far from over, the government’s silence on NHS pay means health staff remain in the dark about how to budget, adds the union. And with ministers choosing the lengthy NHS pay review body process over direct talks with unions, staff are likely to be left out of pocket for many more months, UNISON says. To add insult to injury, the week when health workers should have found out how much the government intends to pay them this year is also when many of their household bills rose significantly. From this week, millions of people will be paying substantially more for their council tax, water, broadband, mobile phones and TV licences. Nurses, cleaners, ambulance workers and other NHS staff now “face months of uncertainty” because the government was late beginning the pay review process and in submitting its own evidence, the union’s letter explains. The letter to Victoria Atkins goes on to say that a “desperately needed annual pay rise” is vital to help staff “pay their bills and stop the steady stream of their colleagues leaving for better-paid jobs elsewhere”. Frustr...
Source: UNISON Health care news - Category: UK Health Authors: Tags: News Press release nhs pay pay review body Source Type: news