NHS union members are organising a campaign to reject the Government’s pay offer in a move that could see it withdrawn and strikes continue.
A cross-union group of activists called NHS Workers Say No has sent out thousands of leaflets and is expected to hold a series of rallies and lobbying events to persuade members to “vote reject”.
Union leaders are now worried the large one-off bonus element of the negotiated 2022/23 settlement could be lost.
If union ballots reject the offer it’s likely the 5% increase for 2023/24 would revert back to the NHS Pay Review Body for it to consider.
If by late summer when its deliberations are concluded inflation looks like dropping below 5%, then a lower settlement could be recommended, it is understood.
The Government could also reject any recommendation and revert back to its original 3.5% offer for 2023/24.
The activist group is dominated by nurses whose main union had publicly stated it was campaigning for a 19% pay uplift.
All major NHS unions bar one and including the Royal College of Nursing are recommending members accept the deal, despite admitting it is “far from ideal”.
Only Unite is not recommending members vote in favour, during ballots in the coming weeks.
Nurse Harry Eccles, one of those behind the NHS Workers Say No movement, said: “It’s an insulting offer. It goes nowhere near what we set out to achieve.
“The job for nurses like me is to speak to our colleagues across the UK, across different unions to say we need to reject this.”
Negotiations by unions representing other NHS staff including nurses and paramedics last week culminated in an offer of a 5% rise for 2023/24.
For the 2022/23 financial year almost at an end, the Government offered a “one off bonus” of 2.5% for the best paid and 8.2% for the worst paid.
This comes on top of the 4% increase already implemented for 2022/23.
NHS Workers Say No is a loose affiliation of more hardline members from the main health unions established in 2020.
A spokesman for the RCN said: “Members will vote in the ballot that opens soon and that is the best way for them to tell Government and the College how they feel about this pay offer.
“This democratic process is extremely important to us and we always committed to giving members a vote on the government’s final offer.
“All NHS staff can see what they would personally gain from the deal and vote accordingly.”
