The biggest nursing strike in NHS history is set to take place before Christmas after union officials said “huge swathes of the country” had voted in favor of industrial action.
Patients already facing registration waiting lists are now likely to see operations and appointments delayed or cancelled. This will be the first national strike in the history of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN).
A union source said this weekend: “This will see most services withdrawn and picket lines across the country.”
The prospect of NHS nurses striking over pay will be a major challenge for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who face a tax hole in the country’s finances of up to £50bn .
It will also be a major test of the government’s resolve on wage restraint as it deals with strike threats in the public sector in the face of the highest inflation since the 1980s.
Union officials say that since the Conservatives took power in 2010, the pay of some experienced nurses has fallen by 20% in real terms. They had asked for wage compensation of 5% plus inflation, a total of about 15%.
But the government said the average annual basic pay for nurses would rise from around £35,600 to around £37,000 from March 2022, an increase of just 4%.
NHS chiefs will be worried that a national strike by nurses will exacerbate the crisis in the country’s hospitals. Figures released in October revealed that a record 7 million people were waiting for hospital treatment in England at the end of August.
More than 300,000 members of the RCN, the UK’s largest nursing union, were voted in for strike action, the largest in the union’s history.
In accordance with RCN strike protocols, any “life-saving” care is withheld. Life-sustaining services include emergency interventions, maintenance of therapeutic services and urgent diagnostic procedures. It would mean that nurses in intensive care units and A&E departments would be exempt from taking part.
The RCN says ministers have failed to address a workforce crisis and “the exploitation of nursing staff cannot be tolerated any longer”. An analysis by the Nuffield Trust published earlier this year found that 40,365 nurses left the NHS in the year to June 2022, the equivalent of one in nine.
NHS England has launched a drive to recruit tens of thousands of nurses to help fill a record number of vacancies. There are more than 46,800 nursing, midwifery and health visitor vacancies in the NHS in England alone.
Counting of RCN ballots continues, but officials hope to announce soon that a majority of nurses from some of the UK’s leading employers and health organizations have voted in favor of strike action.
Pat Cullen, general secretary and chief executive of the RCN, said: “Patients are at great risk when there are not enough nurses. A large number of staff, both experienced and new, are deciding they cannot see a future in a nursing profession that is not valued or treated fairly.
“Our strike action will be for patients and nurses alike – we have your support to do it. As we start the action, politicians from all parts of the UK will be challenged to support the nursing staff and to understand the strength of public support.”
Nurses working in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have been voted.
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Unison is also polling 350,000 NHS staff, including porters, nurses, paramedics and cleaners, on strike action in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Unison’s polls close at the end of this month. Junior doctors have also voted in a vote in January.
The polls, which closed on Wednesday, were held locally within each employer. This means that officials will be able to authorize strike action at any NHS employer that exceeds voting thresholds.
In England, Scotland and Wales, the law states that there must be at least 50% participation and a majority must vote yes for the action to be lawful. There is separate legislation in Northern Ireland.
For years, RCN rules did not support industrial action. These were amended in 1995 to allow strike action as long as it does not harm the interests of patients.
If members support a general strike, it will be the RCN’s first strike in England, Wales and Scotland. Northern Ireland members went on strike for the first time in 2019-20 over pay and staffing levels.
The RCN has not provided any information on the proposed action, but officials say strikes are more likely to take place before Christmas in the event of a favorable vote. It recommended that its members vote in favor of the strike.
NHS England sent a letter to NHS trustees and integrated care boards last week about possible action. He said: “The task for the NHS now is to be prepared for any potential industrial action, so that there is minimal disruption to patient care and emergency services can continue to operate as normal.”