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Journalism of Courage
As Britain braces for the second day of strike by nurses of the state-funded National Health Service, the government on Monday appeared adamant on not agreeing to their main demand of salary hikes, even as news reports suggested that the health secretary, Steve Barclay, was likely to urge health unions for fresh talks.
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The first strike was on December 15, the first-ever nationwide walkout in the 106-year history of the nursing union. According to Reuters, an estimated 100,000 nurses went on strike at 76 hospitals and health centres, cancelling an estimated 70,000 appointments. The same number is expected to go on strike Tuesday. The strike affects England, Northern Ireland, and Wales, but not Scotland. Emergency care and treatment for life-threatening conditions are provided during the strike.
UK cabinet minister Oliver Dowden told the BBC on the nurses’ strike, “We will be resolute to this, because it would be irresponsible to allow public sector pay and inflation to get out of control and we owe a wider duty to the public to make sure we keep our public finances under control…We’re trying to be reasonable, we’re trying to be proportionate and we’re trying to be fair.”
Why the nurses are striking
The NHS nurses want better pay, claiming that due to the low salaries, many are quitting the profession, leaving it severely understaffed and overworked, and also compromising the quality of care offered to patients. According to The Guardian, “figures from NHS Digital show there were a record 47,496 full-time equivalent nursing vacancies in England at the end of September, representing a vacancy rate of 11.9 per cent.”
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) union has demanded a salary hike of 5 per cent above the rate of inflation, which in November was 14 per cent. The union has claimed that the earnings of its members fell by 6 per cent in the last decade.
What the govt says
The government has said that the 4 per cent hike offered to nurses is fair, based on recommendations by an independent NHS Pay Review Body, and anything more than this is fiscally unsustainable.
“I have listened to unions and am open to further discussions, but their [pay] demands are not affordable in the economic circumstances,” health secretary Barclay said.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has taken a similar line, saying the pay offer is “appropriate and fair” and maintaining that the government is open to talks. Sunak told the BBC, “The health secretary has always been clear that his door is always open for talks – we want to be reasonable, we want to be constructive. We’ve got enormous gratitude for all public sector workers for the job they do, and I know things are difficult right now. That’s why the government is providing lots of support for people, particularly with energy bills.”
The government has also pointed out that nurses received a 3 per cent salary hike after the pandemic, when hikes were frozen for several sectors.
There are also fears that agreeing to negotiate on what the pay review body recommended can lead to similar demands in other sectors, which the government can ill-afford.
Pressure rising on govt
For all its firm stance, the Sunak government is under pressure, with large sections of the public supporting the nurses’ strike, some Labour politicians, like Ian Byrne and John McDonnell, reaching picket lines to click pictures with striking workers, and rising nervousness in Tory ranks.
As reported by The Guardian, an opinion poll by Observer found that after Thursday’s strike, three-fifths (60 per cent) of voters said they supported the nurses’ action, up three points from the last poll a fortnight ago. Around 29 per cent opposed the nurses’ move, down one point.
At least two Conservative leaders, former health minister Dan Poulter and former Conservative Party chairman Sir Jake Berry, have come on record to say that the government should improve its offer to the nurses.
What next
The nurses’ union has maintained that if their demands are not met, they will escalate the strikes. Pat Cullen, general secretary of the RCN, was quoted as saying by The Guardian: “The government should get this wrapped up by Christmas. January’s strikes, if they are forced to go ahead, will see more hospitals and more nurses taking part than at present – 2023 needs to be a fresh start for all, not more of the same.”
This comes when Britain is facing strikes in many other sectors, such as by airport and rail workers, ambulance drivers, and postal services workers.
