A massive impact on health services is expected in next week's strike action as unions get tough with bosses. February 6 and 7 are set to be some of the biggest strike days in NHS history.
Thousands of nurses from the Royal College of Nursing, and ambulance workers belonging to GMB and Unite union are striking on Monday, February 6. Midwives and maternity support workers who are members of the Royal College of Midwives for NHS Wales are also going on strike for the first time this year on February 7, and nurses will continue their strike action on that day too. It's the first time all the unions have chosen the same day for their strike action.
WalesOnline understands that nursing leaders are imposing tougher conditions on when staff will work through the strike. In what is known as the derogation process to ensure life-saving services are still running in the NHS in preparation for the strikes, the Royal College of Nursing made it clear that staff deployment would be to "reserve life only", with no exemption to this rule.
