MATT Hancock has been criticised by unions for sending a “Scrooge” letter which suggests a pay rise for nurses will not come until next summer.
The Health Secretary has been accused of “interfering with the pay process” with his letter to the chair of the NHS Pay Review Body on Friday afternoon.
Unions say the note indicates that staff will be waiting until at least May next year for a pay rise.
The letter announcing the start of the NHS pay review process began: “The timing of the Spending Review announcement has unfortunately delayed the commencement of Pay Round 2021 to 2022.”
Mr Hancock went on: “The affordability of pay recommendations will have to be considered within the context of the significant financial and economic pressures that have resulted from the Covid-19 pandemic, both within the NHS and wider public finances.”
Mr Hancock invited the pay board to report back by May next year.
Rachel Harrison, national officer at GMB union, said there was “a principal obligation to award a pay rise to the workers who are still putting themselves in harm’s way to keep us safe”.
“The Health Secretary’s ‘Scrooge’ letter in the week before Christmas will leave NHS workers worried that they will not receive the fair pay rise next year that they were promised,” she said.
“NHS staff will be rightly angry to see Government interfering with the pay process before any evidence is submitted.
“It is outrageous that this letter has been slipped out late on a Friday when ministers hoped that attention was elsewhere.”
The Royal College of Nursing said “the link between unfair pay, staffing levels and patient safety is stark” at a time when “many experienced nurses are burnt out, exhausted and considering leaving the career they love”.
Chief executive and general secretary Dame Donna Kinnair added: “Nursing staff should not have to wait for a pay rise.
“This is no way to treat NHS staff still working through a pandemic.”
Unison also voiced concerns about the Health Secretary’s note, saying it is “cruel to make staff wait until next summer to learn what their pay rise will be”.
The union’s head of health Sara Gorton added: “The Chancellor and Prime Minister must do the right thing and fund a decent wage increase now.
“This would give exhausted staff a morale boost and get services fit for the year ahead.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel