In May 2025, the Westminster government announced a 3.6% pay award for NHS staff in England.  

This award does little to value nursing and will be entirely swallowed up by inflation. We launched a consultation with our members, who turned out in record numbers to tell us that 3.6% is not enough.    

To see our profession paid fairly, we need nursing staff to be recognised not only by annual cost of living increases, but with structural change to nursing pay, providing a clear and effective route to fair pay for the safety-critical role nursing plays in every health and social care setting. Nursing staff must be paid fairly for the work they do.

We're in formal dispute with the Northern Ireland Executive and HSC employers over the lack of a 2025-26 pay award for HSC nursing staff. 

Despite the Northern Ireland Health Minister saying he wants to pay HSC nursing staff the recommended 3.6% pay award that NHS nursing staff in Wales and England will receive, no funding has been made available by the Northern Ireland Executive.

We consulted members on the recommended award in summer 2025. They told us that even if funding were made available, 3.6% would not be enough.  

Read more about our dispute

Our members in Scotland accepted the Scottish government’s pay offer for an increase of 4.25% for 2025-26 and 3.75% for 2026-27 for NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts. The offer also included an inflation guarantee to ensure the increase in pay each year is a minimum of one percentage point higher than average Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation.

A significant minority voted to reject the offer, demonstrating continued frustration and concern about the nursing workforce crisis facing Scotland’s NHS. We will continue to lobby the Scottish government hard on reforming the Agenda for Change pay scheme and implementing the recommendations of the Agenda for Change review.

In May 2025, the Welsh government announced a 3.6% pay award for NHS staff in Wales.  

This award does little to value nursing and will be entirely swallowed up by inflation. We launched a consultation with our members, who turned out in record numbers to tell us that 3.6% is not enough. 

We’re dedicated to advocating for fair pay, pushing for protected continuing professional development time and a 36-hour work week. We’re also committed to holding the Welsh government accountable for eliminating care in inappropriate places (‘corridor care’).

Jersey: Members accepted a three-year deal of pay increases beginning in 2024 and extending until 2026. The current pay offer is:

• 2024 – A pay increase of 8% (consolidated)
• 2025 – A guarantee of RPI + 1% (RPI as at September 2024)
• 2026 – A guarantee of RPI + 1% (RPI as at September 2025)

Pay negotiations for 2027 and beyond will begin again in 2026.

Guernsey: Members accepted a one-year pay offer that will uplift all pay and allowances by 5% from 1 January 2025. Pay negotiations for 2026 and beyond will start later this year.

Isle of Man: In November 2024, members employed by Manx Care voted to reject a 4% pay uplift with effect from 1 April 2024. 70% of those who voted in a subsequent indicative ballot said they would consider strike action. Discussions about the next steps continue.