Nurses across UK vote to go on strike over pay dispute first time in 106 years

The British Nurses Union, representing hundreds of thousands of nurses in the United Kingdom, has voted to hold the first nationwide strike in the union's 106-year history to demand fair pay and safe staffing.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said the action will affect most National Health Service (NHS) employers. The primary grievance of the nurses are pay levels and patient safety concerns.

The union said all NHS employers in Northern Ireland and Scotland will be included in the strike, and all employers in Wales have also reached the threshold to join.

RCN general secretary and chief executive Pat Cullen also said anger was turning into action and all staff believed enough was enough. He said the voice of nurses in the UK is loud and will definitely be heard because nurses can no longer tolerate the financial knife edge at home and the raw deal at work.

300,000 nurses vote for strike in UK amid cost-of-living crisis

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) says it is “understaffed, undervalued and underpaid.”

Cullen said now is the time for ministers to look in the mirror and ask themselves how long they will leave nursing staff in this situation.

“While we plan our strike action, next week's budget is the UK government's opportunity to signal a new direction with serious investment. Across the country, politicians have the power to stop this now and at any point.”

“This action will be as much for patients as it is for nurses.”

“Standards are falling too low and we have strong public backing for our campaign to raise them. This winter, we are asking the public to show nursing staff you are with us.”

The union, with more than 300,000 members, had asked its members for a pay rise of 5% above RPI inflation, which is currently more than 12%.

The RCN said surveys showed the salary of an experienced nurse had fallen by 20% in real terms since 2010, and that nurses were working as little as one day a week without pay.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said while thanking the efforts and sacrifices of NHS staff, including nurses, “we are very sorry that some union members have voted for industrial action.”

“These are challenging times, which is why we accepted the recommendations of the independent NHS Pay Review Body in full and have given over one million NHS workers a pay rise of at least £1,400 this year.”

He said the priority was to keep patients safe during any strike and predicted that strikes across the NHS were likely this winter.

The British Medical Association, which represents doctors, and Emma Runswick, vice president, said in this regard that they want the government to listen to the concerns of health workers and to make the investments the NHS and its workforce desperately need.

Meanwhile, health workers in other unions, including ambulance staff, hospital porters and cleaners are also voting on industrial action over pay.

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