Recently, Julie Lamberth blogged about the reasons why the RCN is recommending members in Scotland eligible to vote in our ballot reject the Scottish government NHS pay offer.
Many of the other questions I get asked about our pay ballot are about industrial action.
What would industrial action mean for our patients and their safety? If I take industrial action, can I be struck off the NMC register? How can I afford to miss a day’s wages to take strike action?
The RCN has a number of resources where you can find answers to, and information on, a wide range of questions and concerns about industrial action. I’d direct you to the RCN Industrial Action Handbook as your guide to how any action would work in practice. You can also find information in a series of articles published in RCN Bulletin recently (links at the end of this blog). But there are some key points to be made.
None of us are considering taking industrial action lightly and the RCN is committed to ensuring any industrial action it initiates has the preservation of patient safety at its core and must follow the life-preserving care model.
The NMC recognises that nurses have the right to take part in lawful industrial action, including strike action, The RCN is clear that it will not ask members to act outside
the Code whilst participating in industrial action, but those of us governed by the Code also need to be mindful of our individual responsibility to act within the Code.
To be clear, the result of the current pay ballot in Scotland will not authorise industrial action.
If enough members reject the pay offer and also tell us that they would be personally willing to take industrial action, the RCN would need to conduct a statutory ballot.
The RCN is going to conduct a statutory ballot in England and Wales in response to the pay award announced by the UK government this week. The decision to go straight to a statutory ballot is due to the different circumstances in both countries.
In England, the UK government is imposing an award. In Scotland, we’ve been involved in direct negotiations with the Scottish government. A final offer has been made and it is right that our members should decide if this offer is acceptable. Our aim is to get the Scottish government back to the table with a clear and strong indication from members that they would be willing to take industrial action if an acceptable offer is not forthcoming.
Industrial action is a tool of last resort but I believe that enough is enough - treatment of nursing staff by successive governments means we have little option left but to flex our collective muscle to stand up for safe staffing and be the Voice of Nursing in considering industrial action.
Many of the other questions I get asked about our pay ballot are about industrial action.
What would industrial action mean for our patients and their safety? If I take industrial action, can I be struck off the NMC register? How can I afford to miss a day’s wages to take strike action?
The RCN has a number of resources where you can find answers to, and information on, a wide range of questions and concerns about industrial action. I’d direct you to the RCN Industrial Action Handbook as your guide to how any action would work in practice. You can also find information in a series of articles published in RCN Bulletin recently (links at the end of this blog). But there are some key points to be made.
None of us are considering taking industrial action lightly and the RCN is committed to ensuring any industrial action it initiates has the preservation of patient safety at its core and must follow the life-preserving care model.
The NMC recognises that nurses have the right to take part in lawful industrial action, including strike action, The RCN is clear that it will not ask members to act outside
the Code whilst participating in industrial action, but those of us governed by the Code also need to be mindful of our individual responsibility to act within the Code.
To be clear, the result of the current pay ballot in Scotland will not authorise industrial action.
If enough members reject the pay offer and also tell us that they would be personally willing to take industrial action, the RCN would need to conduct a statutory ballot.
The RCN is going to conduct a statutory ballot in England and Wales in response to the pay award announced by the UK government this week. The decision to go straight to a statutory ballot is due to the different circumstances in both countries.
In England, the UK government is imposing an award. In Scotland, we’ve been involved in direct negotiations with the Scottish government. A final offer has been made and it is right that our members should decide if this offer is acceptable. Our aim is to get the Scottish government back to the table with a clear and strong indication from members that they would be willing to take industrial action if an acceptable offer is not forthcoming.
Industrial action is a tool of last resort but I believe that enough is enough - treatment of nursing staff by successive governments means we have little option left but to flex our collective muscle to stand up for safe staffing and be the Voice of Nursing in considering industrial action.
More information on industrial action in RCN Bulletin:
Patient safety during strike action
Industrial action explained
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