Hospital staff strike in dispute over back pay

Dozens of hospital staff took part in strike action in a dispute over back pay for healthcare assistants in Nottingham.

The union Unison said the dispute was down to band 2 staff taking on greater responsibilities without being paid the difference.

Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust agreed to pay workers back pay from August 2021 to August 2024.

But this deal was rejected by Unison members, who said healthcare assistants were taking on more responsibilities right through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Christina McAnea, general secretary of Unison, told the BBC: "What's happened in this trust is that they have been getting paid less than they should have been for years."

Staff walked out on Thursday and plan another day of action on Friday. Further strikes are planned for 17, 22 and 28 April.

In a recent ballot, 94% of Unison members at the Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) and City Hospital backed strike action.

The union said, according to NHS guidance, healthcare assistants on band 2 salaries should only be providing personal care, such as bathing and feeding patients.

But it added most of its healthcare assistants had routinely undertaken clinical tasks such as taking blood, performing electrocardiogram tests and inserting cannulas.

Hospital bosses have outlined proposals of a back pay deal from August 2021 to August 2024 - which the union is contesting.

The trust said it believed the deal was a "fair and reasonable offer" - and this had been "accepted by four of the five" unions that represented the workforce.

Ms McAnea said: "This is about demonstrating that staff are entitled to be paid for all the jobs and work that they do.

"We are saying [the back pay deal] is that is not long enough - they were doing higher level jobs, certainly through Covid, and the trust has to recognise that, and they are denying that.

"That has really angered people here because they were holding the hands of dying patients every day, giving them intimate personal care."

Tracy Pilcher, chief nurse at NUH, urged people to attend appointments as normal.

"Our healthcare support workers are a vital and valuable group of colleagues," she said. "Our hospitals could not run without their skill and dedication to our patients.

"We believe that this is a fair and reasonable offer, and this has been accepted by four of the five unions who represent the workforce. I am sorry that we could not reach a resolution with Unison.

"During the strike action, the safety of our patients and staff remains our top priority. Our teams have developed robust plans to mitigate the impact on our services."

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