Strike action by nurses in one of the largest nursing unions will end after a ballot of its members in England failed to achieve a mandate.
A ballot of nurses for strikes has failed to reach the legal threshold to achieve a mandate for further industrial action, the Royal College of Nursing announced. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said it will continue to put pressure on the government to deliver fair pay for nursing in the NHS in England after turnout in a statutory strike ballot did not surpass the 50 per cent legal threshold for action.
In the ballot, more than 100,000 RCN members voted in favour of strike action – around 84 per cent of the total number of people who voted. The RCN said approximately 140,000 ballot papers needed to be returned in the post to meet the threshold and only 122,000 were received by the closing date of Friday June 23.
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The RCN balloted its members after the previous six-month mandate for strike action had expired. Its members were among a minority of health staff who rejected the government's pay deal of a 5 per cent rise this and a lump sum of at least £1,655.
In an email to members, RCN general secretary and chief executive Pat Cullen said: “While the vast majority of members who returned their ballot papers voted in favour of strike action, we did not meet the 50 per cent turnout threshold necessary for us to be able to take further strike action.
“While this will be disappointing for many of you, the fight for the fair pay and safe staffing that our profession, our patients, and our NHS deserves, is far from over.”
Members of the RCN have taken part in eight days of strikes since the start of December. They have involved around half of front-line services.
Members of Unison - the biggest NHS union - and those belonging to the bodies representing physios and midwives also backed the deal, which has now started to be paid. It means only Unite in England has a mandate for strike action - and that is only for local strikes among some ambulance staff and support workers.
The Royal College of Radiographers is still balloting its members. This pay deal and dispute is separate to the one involving members of the British Medical Association as doctors are on a different contract.
Junior doctors are due to take part in five-day strike next month, while the results of the strike ballot of consultants closed on Tuesday. An announcement on that is due soon.
