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Fair Pay for Nursing

Learn about our campaign and see how you can get involved

Join us to demand pay justice for nursing staff

Nursing staff are chronically undervalued. Despite nursing being a highly skilled, degree-educated, safety-critical profession, outdated pay structures mean that many nursing staff begin and end their careers at the same pay level.

The situation is critical. Poor pay and working conditions are forcing staff to leave nursing. Almost half of the thousands of frontline NHS staff we recently surveyed say they’re actively planning or considering leaving their job.

We know that when nursing staff are paid fairly, offered career progression and work in fully staffed teams, they're more likely to stay in the profession.

We need members and supporters to come together to demand pay justice, improved career progression and safe staffing measures to address the workforce crisis in our health systems and deliver the recognition nursing staff deserve.

Nursing needs a fresh start

In January 2024, the UK government launched a consultation to explore the creation of a separate pay structure, also known as a pay spine, for nursing staff working for the NHS in England.

Our members helped shape our response to the consultation. In April, we submitted our response.  

Nursing pay around the UK

England

Blue graphic of the United Kingdom

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.  

Soon, we’ll launch a consultation asking eligible members if the 3.6% pay award is enough. 

In the meantime, read the full detail of the pay award.

To see nursing 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.

Northern Ireland

Following a lengthy delay in receiving a pay offer, members in Northern Ireland have accepted the 5.5% Pay Review Body (PRB) pay recommendation for NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts for 2024/25.

We’re calling for the Department of Health in Northern Ireland to ensure that the unacceptable delay in implementing a pay award for health care staff does not happen again and for negotiations to begin swiftly for 2025-2026.

Our campaign for fair and equitable pay continues, and we are also committed to ensuring that safe staffing legislation, which has been promised since 2020, is implemented.

Scotland

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.

Wales

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.  

Soon, we’ll launch a consultation asking eligible members if the 3.6% pay award is enough. 

In the meantime, read the full detail of the pay award.

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’).

Crown dependencies

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.

Our fight for fair pay

We're calling on governments across the UK to show that they value nursing as the skilled and safety-critical profession it is. Politicians must:

  • Recognise that nursing wage rises have consistently been below inflation for the past 13 years. The impact of this has been exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis.
  • Value the care that nursing staff provide every day, and the training, qualifications, skills and responsibilities required by their roles.
  • Commit to a substantial, above-inflation pay rise, to recognise the chronic workforce shortages and encourage staff to join and stay in the profession.
  • Introduce measures to improve long-term career prospects for nursing staff.
  • Create a fresh start for nursing as an attractive, rewarding profession to tackle the tens of thousands of unfilled nursing posts.  

The role of the NHS Pay Review Body 

Governments can use different routes to determine pay increases. Often governments in the UK ask review bodies to look at evidence and make recommendations on public sector pay before ministers set an award.

The Westminster government decides pay awards for NHS staff employed on Agenda for Change contracts in England following recommendations from the NHS Pay Review Body. Governments in Wales and Northern Ireland do the same for NHS staff in their respective countries, though they are often influenced by decisions made by the Westminster government. In Scotland, for the past few years, we have negotiated NHS pay directly with the Scottish government.

This year, we're calling for a new approach. We want nursing to have direct influence in pay negotiations, not to submit evidence and wait months to hear an outcome. Recent awards and events show that the NHS Pay Review Body is not currently functioning in a way that our members can have confidence in.

It's time for a different approach

We're calling for direct negotiations with the government over NHS pay and pay structures in England to address the long-standing issues nursing staff face. This decision has been taken by fellow RCN members you’ve elected to the Trade Union Committee. They're supported by our Council in the interest of all our members, the patients and communities we serve, and the NHS.

We support the government’s aims to rebuild the NHS, to move towards prevention and to modernise the way care is delivered. But time is running out and our members need action and clarity on their future now. That's why we're offering to get round the table for meaningful discussions.

Help get nursing to the negotiating table. 

Add your name
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Pay justice through job evaluation

For years, we’ve called for revised national nursing role profiles, so that nursing staff are graded correctly from the outset.

Progress is now being made by NHS Staff Council’s Job Evaluation Group to update job profiles to accurately reflect the duties of modern nursing at each pay band. But revised job profiles don’t go far enough.

Read our response to draft profiles Learn about job evaluation
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Latest campaign news

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Your strength is in your numbers

Our fight for fair pay in independent health and social care

We campaign for nursing staff in all settings to receive fair pay, no matter what sector they’re employed in. 
Find out more about our campaign
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Page last updated - 17/12/2024

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