Members of NHS staff in Wales have been sent an email from bosses with advice on how to access food banks. The email was reportedly sent to NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership staff, a body that provided logistical support for health services.
It was entitled 'Financial Well-Being Support' and gave money-saving tips for parents to help them through the summer holidays, linked to articles on how to access a food bank and provided information on a service that tells you where to find them.
One worker told BBC Wales that they were "incredulous" after being sent the email and added that after putting in extra work during the coronavirus pandemic the email felt "very hollow - like what we were doing was not appreciated enough by governing bodies".
Read more: What the £1,400 NHS pay rise means for nurses, midwives, cleaners, porters and other staff
They said: "It was knowing that people were suffering, and we're just being left to it. I was sad that people were struggling so much that we were left with no other alternative option other than to go to the food banks. I was a bit incredulous as well that people would be left to suffer after giving so much of their time and energy to helping others."
The organisation said the email was not intended to cause offence. It comes after a pay rise announced for Welsh NHS staff was described as "pitiful and insulting" by leading unions. On Friday afternoon Health Minister Eluned Morgan confirmed that all NHS staff on Agenda for Change contracts - including nurses, cleaners, porters, healthcare support workers and healthcare professionals - will get a £1,400 pay rise on most pay grades.
Helen Whyley, director of RCN Wales, said nurses are "outraged" to hear the pay award is well below inflation yet again. Following the announcement, the union has made "a ground-breaking decision" to move directly to strike ballot on industrial action. Read more here.
Talking about the email, Hugh McDyer, head of health at the Unison Cymru Wales union, told the BBC it came as "no surprise", and said they are being approached on a daily basis by staff who are seeking financial support.
He told the Claire Summers Show: "The healthcare worker who has raised this issue is not an alone. Our representatives advise us that health care workers approach them practically on a daily basis now, seeking some information, either financial support through UNISON's own welfare system. So unfortunately, I'm really not surprised by this.
"It's a sad day when our members are having to make choices to heat or eat or go to a food bank to ensure their family does eat."
An NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership spokesman said the email included a "minor reference" to food banks and added: "A health and well-being themed internal communication was circulated to NWSSP staff on 13 July 2022, in response to a series of questions from our staff."
They said the organisation recognised "the incredible hard work, commitment and dedication that our staff undertake on a day to day basis" and that the email "was not intended to cause offence but rather communicate the wide range of support on offer".
Read next:
- My dad went to A&E in pain because he was tired of waiting for appointments and 10 days later he died from cancer'
- 'I slept on the floor during my traumatic 18-hour stay in A&E only to be sent home without treatment
-
Nurses skipping meals and queueing at food banks to feed families
- Wales' top doctor on the rise in Covid cases, when they could peak and whether future restrictions are likely
-
Mum of man stabbed on Portugal stag do says he has had six operations since attack
