3% salary increase for UK NHS employees

HS Staff at United Kingdom A 3% salary increase can be provided, although the government says only 1% is affordable.

After the independent NHS pay review agency reviewed the evidence submitted by the minister and unions and other unions, the proposal is expected to be criticized for being too low. Royal College of Nursing (RCN).

The government stated in March that despite the extraordinary efforts of NHS staff to deal with the pandemic, it could only sustain a 1% increase, which sparked anger.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson In defense of the plan, the former Minister of Health Matt Hancock Said that the reason for the decision to recommend such a small increase was because of the assessment of “what a country can afford” after the Covid crisis.

The NHS pay review agency made a recommendation a few weeks ago, making the union question why the pay increase is still being postponed.

Pat Cullen, Acting General Secretary of RCN, said: “The Minister of Health Sajid Javid There is a historic opportunity to show that the government values ​​NHS staff and understand the importance of this salary increase in improving patient care.

“Nursing pay has fallen sharply in the past ten years-it has actually fallen by 15%. If the government really wants to fill tens of thousands of vacancies for nurses, then a big pay increase is needed.

“Like any other investment, this will be critical to the NHS’s recovery in the coming years.

“When employees face unprecedented challenges, a few percent of low-level rewards will appear timid and insulting to employees.”

The United Nations National Health Officer Colenzo Jarrett-Thorpe said: “If the pay review agency recommends a 3% salary increase, then this is the insulting 1% salary increase proposed by the government in March. One small step.

“However, this recommendation never acknowledges that the actual income suffered by many NHS workers has fallen by 19% over the past decade, nor does it recognize the tremendous sacrifices that health workers have made and will continue to make as the Covid infection rate rises again rapidly. .