Workers’ union begins strike ballot after two NHS hospital trusts offer ‘the worst back-pay deal’ in London
Strike ballot: workers at St Helier, St George’s in Tooting and Epsom hospitals are voting on whether to take industrial action
More than 600 healthcare assistants at St Helier Hospital and across the group at St George’s in Tooting and Epsom Hospital are to be balloted for strike action after the hospitals’ trusts refused to compensate them fairly for what their union describes as “years of underpayment”.
The Unison union has opened the strike ballot today, following a consultation which showed 99% of the affected staff are in favour of strike action. The ballot runs until December 22.
Healthcare assistants cover a wide range of essential hospital functions, from maternity support to theatre support care workers to clinical support and endoscopy technicians.
“The workers have been expected to routinely carry out clinical duties for many years, such as patient observations and complex care, when these tasks should be paid at a higher grade,” their union said today.
The employers, St George’s University Hospitals NHS Trust and the Epsom and St Helier University NHS Hospitals Trust, have agreed that the healthcare assistants should be moved from Band 2 of their pay scale to the better-paid Band 3.
Unison says the trusts haven’t gone far enough to ensure these staff are fairly paid for the extra work they have already done. The union says managers have refused to negotiate and offered just a year and five months’ back pay.
Unison’s London regional organiser, Debbie Eakins, said: “This is the worst back-pay deal we’ve seen in London when it comes to settling this sort of dispute.
“The employers have shown how little they value these healthcare assistants by offering so little. Many other hospitals have settled similar disputes by agreeing to pay far more.
“There’s also been little recognition given to experienced staff. Those who have two years under their belts have been placed at the bottom of their new pay band, when the union had pushed for them to be at the top.
“Some workers who do significant amounts of unsocial hours have found themselves worse off because of the way this has been done.
“Staff deserve better. Healthcare assistants play a vital role in the NHS and services simply wouldn’t function without them.
“They must be properly compensated for the years they’ve been paid incorrectly.”
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