Wes Streeting has been warned by NHS unions not to waste any more time before starting formal negotiations on pay and reform.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the 13 other unions say negotiations must start urgently, with the College telling ministers that there is ‘no excuse for wasting more time’. The government had promised talks on reform over a year ago.
The College has signed a joint letter with all NHS unions to the health secretary in which for the first time the majority of unions also confirm they will not take part in the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB) process. The RCN will again refuse to submit evidence and has been severely critical of the PRB over recent years.
The unions say talks must be held directly with government and include both long-overdue reform to the Agenda for Change pay structure and next year’s pay award (26/27) to ensure it arrives on time.
In July, RCN members in the NHS in England rejected the government’s pay award in record numbers, frustrated with a broken pay structure which pushes them towards the bottom of the scale. It leaves staff unable to progress, failing to recognise the highly-skilled and autonomous work they do today. It is the key driver for discontent with pay among nursing professionals in the NHS, the RCN says.
Among the reforms being sought by the RCN are progression for nursing staff from band 5 - band 6, alongside better starting salaries and clearer paths to progression for all.
Jo Galbraith-Marten, RCN Executive Director of Legal and Member Relations said:
“Ministers promised talks on reform over a year ago. Since then, nursing staff delivered another damning verdict on pay. There is no excuse for wasting more time, we need formal negotiations now.
“Nursing has changed beyond recognition. It is a more skilled and autonomous profession, with much more responsibility. But the profession is still rooted to the bottom of the pay scale and unable to progress, with nursing pay stuck in a time warp as if the last 20 years of progress didn’t happen. The only way to recruit and retain the nursing staff we need is to deliver Agenda for Change structural reform.
“Unions are standing together today and saying that there is no justification for outsourcing responsibility for NHS pay to a failed PRB process. We will not take part. The best way to deliver reform and a fair pay award is to negotiate directly with trade unions.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
The 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 interests 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.
For more information, contact the RCN press office at 020 7647 3633 or email mediateamhq@rcn.org.uk
