Healthcare workers across Lanarkshire are to be balloted over strike action in a continuing pay dispute.
Members of Unison, which is Scotland’s largest NHS trade union, will be receiving official voting papers from Monday seeking their views on taking action in protest over the tabled five per cent pay offer.
Union officials this week sent formal notification of their formal postal ballot plans to 29 health service employers – including NHS Lanarkshire – describing the current national offer as “nowhere near enough”.
Voting for Unison’s 50,000 members in NHS Scotland will run throughout October; with 83 per cent previously having supported taking industrial action in an earlier digital consultative ballot.
Wilma Brown, the union’s health committee chair, said: “The Scottish Government’s offer is nowhere near enough to keep pace with rising prices, is nowhere near what’s needed to improve staffing and protect patient care, and will only worsen the current staffing crisis.
“It is now six months since NHS staff should have had a pay increase – it is simply not good enough. No-one wants to take strike action but without urgent intervention from the Scottish Government on pay, our members will be left with no choice.”
Unison head of health Matt McLaughlin added: “This is the first time since devolution that NHS workers have been balloted for strike action over pay.
“We’re in the biggest cost of living and NHS staffing crisis in history and yet the Scottish Government want hard-working health workers to accept a real-terms pay cut.
“The health minister needs to understand the anger felt by NHS workers and telling them that he is disappointed they did not accept a below-inflation pay deal is not going to solve this dispute – our hard-working NHS staff deserve better, and the minister needs to come back to the table with a serious offer.”
Health secretary Humza Yousaf had said last month: “While we respect the mandate given to trade unions, I am disappointed they have voted to reject the record five per cent pay deal and are now holding ballots for industrial action.
“We will consider the next steps and look to re-engage with trade unions as soon as we can, and hope to reach a satisfactory outcome.”
NHS Lanarkshire human resources director Kay Sandilands said: “The pay offer is set nationally and beyond our control.
“However, should staff vote for industrial action we will work with staff and trade unions to ensure that we can continue to provide the highest standards of safe, person-centred care for the people of Lanarkshire, whilst respecting the right to take industrial action.”
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