The Health Secretary told struggling NHS staff to work harder if they want a pay rise, a union chief claimed today.
Unite’s Onay Kasab branded comments by Steve Barclay “an insult”. He said: “People are working well beyond their contracted hours anyway.”
Talks to stop NHS strikes failed today meaning 999 crews will walk out on Wednesday, then nurses.
Worn down by 13 years of Tory cuts, the pandemic and an exodus of colleagues, NHS staff are working harder than ever to keep the crippled service running.
But the Government’s answer to their plea for a decent wage to match their commitment was to tell them to graft more for it, a union chief claimed.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay was today accused of insulting NHS staff, who the Tories roundly hailed and applauded for their dedication at the height of Covid.
Talks aimed at preventing a wave of winter strikes broke down. Ambulance staff will now walk out tomorrow, followed by nurses on January 18 and 19.
Unite negotiator Onay Kasab claimed No10 told health workers they would need to “justify” a pay rise through productivity. He said: “This isn’t a factory we’re talking about. We’re talking about people who are working well beyond their contracted hours anyway just to get the job done as they care so much.
“For the Government to be talking about productivity in exchange for a payment is an insult to every single one of our members.” The lack of a wage rise offer dashed hopes NHS staff could be given a one-off payment this year to settle the row.
The Royal College of Nursing’s Joanne Galbraith-Marten said after the meeting with Mr Barclay: “There is no resolution to our dispute yet in sight.
“The meeting was bitterly disappointing.
“Nothing for the current year and simply repeating that ‘the budget is already set’ for next year. This intransigence is letting patients down.
“Ministers have a distance to travel to avert next week’s nurse strike.” Unison’s head of health Sara Gorton added: “Ministers know unless they come up with some hard cash for a pay boost for what’s left of this financial year, there can be no resolution to the dispute.
“And there must be talks soon to agree the increase health workers are due from April.”
It comes as the latest RCN employment survey showed 74.1% of members “report regularly working beyond their contracted hours at least once a week, 37.6% do so several times a week and 17.4% report working additional hours on every shift or working day” in the health service.
The study added: “Of those who reported working additional hours at least once a week, 29.5% report working between one and two hours a week, 37.8% between three and six hours, 12% between seven and 10 hours and 12.3% stated they regularly work over 10 hours a week extra.”
A Department of Health insider rejected Mr Kasab’s claims about working harder, insisting the union boss was not around the table for discussions with Mr Barclay.
The source said talks about productivity were linked to the 2023/24 pay settlement, rather than a one-off payment. Mr Barclay has already sparked fury among NHS workers by refusing to admit the crisis gripping the service is anything to do with Tory cuts.
The National Education Union, NAHT and the NASUWT are due to announce the result of strike ballots within days as teachers also press for higher wages.
In a statement after talks with Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, NEU joint general secretaries Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney said: “If the Government wants to avoid industrial action then there is only a small window of opportunity before the NEU declares its ballot result.
“No one wants to strike and the Government can avoid it by talking and making progress on pay.”
RMT boss Mick Lynch refused to say whether progress was made during a meeting with Rail Minister Huw Merriman. Strikes crippled the network last week but no fresh walkouts are planned.
Rishi Sunak said it was a “positive sign” that negotiations were taking place. The PM added: “We’ve always said the Government is happy to talk about pay demands that are anchored in what’s reasonable, what’s responsible, and what’s affordable for the country.”
