We, the undersigned, call on Margaret Garbett, Chief Nurse at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, to immediately reverse the cut to bank rates for all nursing staff.

The Trust has stated that bank shifts are paid appropriately for the duties required, and that nursing staff are not expected to work beyond the level of the shift they have accepted. However, this does not reflect the reality experienced by nursing staff working across the trust.

Nurses do not deliver care based on pay banding; they deliver care based on patient need. Staff working bank shifts are regularly expected to take on responsibilities beyond the advertised level of the shift, including supporting ward coordination, responding to deteriorating patients, managing patient flow, and carrying out higher-level duties, often without the pay reflecting the level of responsibility being undertaken.

Nursing staff also remain professionally accountable to the standards of the Nursing and Midwifery Council regardless of the banding attached to a bank shift. Many staff have raised concerns that, in practice, they may still be expected to respond to clinical situations or undertake responsibilities beyond the advertised level of the shift to maintain safe patient care.

This creates understandable concern amongst nursing staff, who feel caught between the reality of clinical practice and a pay structure that does not reflect the level of responsibility they may still be expected to carry.

The growing gap between what staff are told and what they are expected to do in practice is leaving many nursing staff feeling undervalued, unfairly treated, and increasingly reluctant to work additional bank shifts.

At a time when the NHS continues to face significant staffing pressures, nursing staff should not be expected to accept reduced rates while continuing to carry the same professional accountability and responsibility for patient care.

We are asking nursing staff across UHB to stand together and add their name to this petition to demonstrate the scale of concern amongst frontline workers. Every signature helps build our collective voice and strengthens the call for fair treatment, safe staffing, and proper recognition of the responsibilities nursing staff undertake every day.

We call on the Trust to:

• Immediately reverse the cuts to bank rates for nursing staff
• Ensure bank rates accurately reflect the level of responsibility staff are expected to undertake
• Work meaningfully with nursing staff and trade union representatives to address concerns raised by frontline workers

By signing this petition, we are collectively calling for fairness, recognition, and respect for nursing staff across University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust.

This petition can be signed by RCN members, non-members who are University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust employees, and anyone who agrees that nursing staff should be paid their worth.