RCN welcomes Assembly Minister’s support for UK wide pay settlement for nurses
Published: 24 August 2007
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) today welcomed the commitment made by the Minister for Health and Social Services in Wales to press the UK government for the full implementation of the 2.5% pay award for all nurses, as recommended by the independent Pay Review Body.
Edwina Hart, the Minister for Health in the newly-elected Welsh Assembly government also urged the Secretary of State Patricia Hewitt to reopen talks with her Exchequer colleagues.
Tina Donnelly Director of the RCN in Wales which represents 22,700 nurses in the country commented, “We welcome the support shown to the nursing family by the Welsh Assembly Government. It echoes the support shown by the other political parties in their election manifestos. RCN members in Wales are delighted that the new health minister Edwina Hart has agreed to further review the recommendations of the Independent Pay Review body in Wales and they will be expecting to be treated the same as their colleagues in Scotland by having the pay award in full and backdated to 1 April 2007. This will really demonstrate the commitment of the new minister in valuing professionals and their commitment to delivering a first class health service to the people in Wales. We know that this pay award is affordable.”
The Royal College of Nursing, which represents 400,000 nurses in the UK, accepted the recommendations of the independent Pay Review Body for an award that is itself considerably below the current rate of inflation. Angered by the decision to stage the award the RCN is currently preparing to carry out an indicative ballot on the possibility of industrial action in support of its claim. It says that the current phased award worth 1.9% is derisory and an insult to nurses. Following its campaign representatives of all political parties across the UK have supported the claim for a single pay award.
Dr Peter Carter, General Secretary of the RCN, said of the developments in Wales: “We are glad to see that the Welsh Assembly Government takes the opinion of the independent Pay Review Body seriously. It is a matter of principle that the award should be made in full and the independence of the review body upheld.”
However, he continued “The prospect of industrial action has not gone away and will not until all nurses in the UK receive a just settlement to their pay claim.”
In Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, the new Health Secretary confirmed earlier this week that all staff in NHS Scotland will receive the 2.5% recommended by the PRB in full next month, backdated from 1 April.
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Notes to Editors
For further information, interviews or illustrations please contact the RCN Wales Press Office on 029 2075 1373 or 07793 580 833, or email press.office@rcn.org.uk or visit http://www.rcn.org.uk/news/mediacentre.php
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK and is the largest professional union of nursing staff in the world. The RCN promotes the interest of nurses and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape healthcare policy by working closely with the UK Government and other national and international institutions, trade unions, professional bodies and voluntary organisations.
The staged pay award for nurses gives nurses a 1.5% increase in April 2007, with a further 1% in November 2007.
Nurses earn 20% less than primary teachers and 24% less than secondary teachers.
68% of nurses have to undertake temporary work to supplement their income.
A form of industrial action that may be considered is for nurses to stop working unpaid overtime, a move that would have serious financial consequences for the NHS. Over 16,000 nurses in Wales work an average of more than six hours unpaid overtime a week. Losing this unpaid overtime cost the NHS in Wales around £1.2 million a week.
The following debate in the National Assembly for Wales took place on Wednesday, 13th June 2007
REF: NNDM3615 Jocelyn Davies (Plaid Cymru South Wales East) To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:
Calls on the Assembly Government to take steps to address low staff morale within the NHS and to begin by:
implementing the full pay increase for nurses; developing an appropriate application process for junior doctors; developing a strategy to minimise abuse of NHS staff.