LONDON, Dec 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — UK nurses begin an unprecedented strike as a “last resort” in their fight for better wages and working conditions, despite warnings it could put patients at risk.
Up to 100,000 members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are holding a one-day stoppage from 0800 to 2000 GMT Thursday after rejecting a government pay offer.
The strike is the first in the Royal College of Nursing union’s 106-year history.
The UK is currently grappling with a cost-of-living crisis as spiralling inflation outstrips wage growth.
Union leaders and health workers also said nurses were being overworked due to staff shortages, as the state-run National Health Service (NHS) battled a backlog in appointments made worse by cancellations during the pandemic.
Chemotherapy, dialysis, intensive care and high-dependency units, as well as neonatal and paediatric intensive care will be protected.
But other services will be reduced to Christmas staffing levels during the walk-out, the RCN said.
Health chiefs warned unions that care levels could suffer because of the walkout, just as seasonal respiratory conditions such as flu add pressure on already stretched services.
The RCN’s industrial action is part of a growing wave of stoppages by public and private sector employees.
Healthcare unions say their members are skipping meals, struggling to feed and clothe their families, and leaving the NHS in droves.
But successive below-inflation awards since 2010 have left experienced nurses worse off by 20 percent in real terms, they say.
The RCN wants a pay rise significantly above inflation which surged to a 41-year high of 11.1 percent in October, falling slightly to 10.7 percent last month.
The government maintains the demands are unaffordable and Health Secretary Steve Barclay called the strikes “deeply regrettable”.
RCN general secretary Pat Cullen has offered to “press pause” on the strikes if Barclay agreed to talks.
But Barclay insisted that while he was open to talks on wider issues, the pay settlement was recommended by an independent review body and would not be reopened.
The NHS Pay Review Body recommended a pay rise of at least £1,400 ($1,740) on top of a 3.0 percent pay rise last year, he said. — NNN-AGENCIES
