News
RCN disappointed to see NHS pay process begin before talks conclude
The health secretary has written to the NHS Pay Review Body about pay for 2027/28
Connect with us:
Health secretary James Murray MP has formally started the process that will recommend the pay award for staff on Agenda for Change contracts in England next year.
Mr Murray has written to the NHS Pay Review Body (NHSPRB), asking it to make recommendations on NHS pay for the financial year April 2027 to April 2028.
The RCN says it is “disappointing” to see the remit letter before the conclusion of ongoing talks about structural pay reform in the NHS.
RCN Executive Director of Legal Services and Member Relations Jo Galbraith-Marten said another generation of nursing staff must not be failed by “an outdated and flawed” pay process.
She called for the new prime minister to take the “unique opportunity for a fresh start” and to engage with trade unions directly via collective bargaining.
Earlier this week, the RCN was one of 14 unions who delivered a joint letter to the health secretary, saying UK governments must fund reforms to Agenda for Change (AfC) to make fair pay a reality.
In response to the remit letter, Jo said: “The new prime minister has an opportunity to dispense with this failed process that has let down nursing staff for a generation. It has achieved nothing but suppress the pay of the country’s most trusted profession and cause a recruitment and retention crisis in the NHS’s largest workforce.
“It is disappointing to see the remit letter before the ongoing structural reform talks have concluded. Those talks require significant investment from the Westminster government in order to succeed. Although the remit letter offers a potential route to direct, multi-year negotiations with trade unions on headline pay, the necessary funding must be made available to deliver what nursing staff deserve.
“Another generation of nursing staff cannot be failed by the incoming government retaining an outdated and flawed process. This is a unique opportunity for a fresh start, and for all governments to engage with trade unions directly via collective bargaining and end the cycle of real terms pay cuts that have demoralised nursing staff and pushed them out of the profession.”
RCN members have a say on decisions that have an impact on their pay. We’ve pressed hard to get negotiations on pay reform, and they are critical to us improving nursing pay.
Make sure your details are up to date so you can hear all the news and act on the outcome of these negotiations over the coming months.
Top image: RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger discussing pay with nursing staff in 2025. Photography by Steve Baker.
