The BDA and 13 other health unions, collectively representing more than 1.2million health workers, are asking Health Secretary Yvette Cooper to take care of 'unfinished business' and conclude government talks to fix deep-seated problems with NHS pay structure.
We are urging her to make up for lost momentum, following the departure of her predecessors Wes Streeting and James Murray in quick succession, causing progress to stall.
In April this year, ministers imposed a 3.3% pay increase for staff on the Agenda for Change (AfC) salary scale following a pay review body recommendation. But that came with a promise to tackle problems with the increasingly outdated wage structure and backdate any improvements in pay to April.
Sonila Ellahi, Director of Trade Union and Employee Relations says, “NHS staff have waited long enough for ministers to deliver on their promise to fix the Agenda for Change pay system.
“Health workers including our dietetic workforce have kept services running through some of the most challenging years in the NHS's history, yet many feel they are being left behind.
"The government committed not only to a pay award but to meaningful reform of a pay structure that is no longer fit for purpose. Talks must resume immediately and be bought to a conclusion without further delay.
"Health workers want solutions, not uncertainty. Ministers have repeatedly said they prefer negotiation to dispute. Now is the time to prove it by working with us to deliver a fair deal that rewards experience, improves retention and recognises the vital contribution of every member of the NHS team.
“Failure to act risks worsening recruitment and retention problems at a time when patients need a stable, motivated and properly valued workforce more than ever."
Collectively we’re hearing that NHS workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland feel they’re getting second-class treatment with pay awards consistently and significantly below those given to doctors and dentists.
This means wage gaps are ever-widening, which does little to make health staff feel they are all part of one team, working together in the interest of patients.
Over the past four years, resident doctors have seen their pay rise at double the rate of AfC staff. It hasn’t gone unnoticed that long-running strike action by resident doctors has led to the significantly increased pay offers in recent years.
Ministers have said they want to resolve problems through talks not strikes so urgently resuming talks to fix salary scales is essential. The delays mean the 2027 pay rise must also now be considered in the same set of talks.
Without fair pay awards we know it will be harder to recruit and hang on to staff, with wages failing to compete.
