British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at St George’s Hospital in London, Thursday March 16, 2023. TOBY MELVILLE / AP
The UK government on Thursday March 16 proposed a pay increase for several categories of public health workers. This proposal, supported by some unions, could end several months of strikes in England. It “includes an increase in remuneration for 2022-2023 and an agreement on remuneration for 2023-2024,” according to the government.
A press release signed by the latter, the body responsible for pay in the public health system, the National Health Service (NHS), and workers’ union members said that “both parties believe that this represents a fair and reasonable solution that appreciates.” the commitment of NHS staff as well as the broader economic pressures the UK is facing.”
“More than a million NHS workers in England are getting an extra pay rise. »
For the current financial year (April 2022-April 2023), the affected employees will receive an additional bonus of 2% on their remuneration in addition to the originally decided increase of 4%. They will also receive a one-off payment based on their seniority, with a minimum of £1,250 (€1,425). Finally, salaries will increase by 5% for the next year (April 2023 to April 2024).
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“It is not a panacea, but a tangible advance”
The various unions involved in the negotiations must now submit this proposal to their members for a vote. The Unite union has already said it would “not recommend” its members adopting it. Conversely, the RCN, the nurses’ union, announced in a press release that it “will recommend that its members vote to accept this offer”. “It’s not a panacea, but it’s tangible progress,” Secretary General Pat Cullen said.
Hospital doctors who were on strike this week and did not take part in the negotiations are not included in the proposal. Nurses and other health workers have been demanding wage increases for months to deal with inflation, which is in the country’s double digits. Nurses have gone on strike several times since December, the first in over a hundred years.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomed the proposal, calling it “sustainable for taxpayers” and allowing the government “to keep my promise to reduce inflation”. “We chose a sensible approach from the start,” he added, responding to criticism from the opposition and unions of the “hesitation and time it took” to find a solution that led to numerous strikes across the country. They have further disrupted a health service already damaged by the fallout from the pandemic and staff shortages.
A day after the government unveiled the budget, Health Secretary Steve Barclay didn’t say how the pay rises will be funded, but told British media it would not translate into savings on services that ‘treat patients’.
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