Largest nursing strike in NHS history set to start

[fillyboy]

If you don't like the t&c’s go and work somewhere else.

They are.

Hmm, like Jenny McGee.

Some are leaving John, for whatever reason, but greater numbers are joining so the number of nurses continues to increase.

/Stats And Facts On The UK's Nursing Workforce

An at-a-glance compilation of the latest UK nursing workforce data for 2026.

www.nurses.co.uk

 

[ajohn]

so the number of nurses continues to increase

That can be part of the plot that can crop up in a number of areas. Providing more join than leave all's ok approach rather than trying to keep.

 

[fillyboy]

That can be part of the plot that can crop up in a number of areas. Providing more join than leave all's ok approach rather than trying to keep.

Reading your posts (and others) gives the impression there are less nurses than last year or the year before. That's untrue, there are more.

 

[Dork Lard]

I might be wrong . . . . But when they try to tell me that all these NHS nurses are deserting the NHS like it's some kind of sinking ship, I often wonder where exactly is it they're going???

Have they found some haven in commerce/industry that pays better for less hours?

Or, are they signing up to the agencies that will put them back exactly where they were last week for 3-5x the cost???

 

[JohnD]

I might be wrong . . . . But when they try to tell me that all these NHS nurses are deserting the NHS like it's some kind of sinking ship, I often wonder where exactly is it they're going???

If pay and conditions are so bad, and contempt from your ultimate employer so disgusting, that working in Tesco is more appealing, they'll work in Tesco.

You are foolish if you believe that commitment and vocation can be constantly abused without damaging workforce relations.

Real wages, after inflation, have not risen in ten years, and now are going substantially down. A poor reward for working at crisis level for the last two years.

 

[ajohn]

That's untrue, there are more.

I tend to stress the number of vaccancies and comments on staffing levels even from a nurse my son lives with. She wont be striking, The reason for that is the desire that caused her to become a nurse - to care for people.

The comment I made about keeping people relates to some obscure management ideas. It's fine providing the influx is adequate. When staffing levels are not being maintained that becomes a problem. The private sector needs to bid for people when that happens.

I also strongly suspect that in terms of keeping NHS costs low as far as people are concerned they are probably looking in the wrong area and I don't just mean senior management. In fact that may be ok.

 

[JohnD]

She wont be striking, The reason for that is the desire that caused her to become a nurse - to care for people.

It's shameful that our Government wants to exploit the dedication of essential workers by driving their pay below inflation, and condemning them to poor working conditions.

Exactly the opposite treatment is given to MPs and Ministers.

 

[ajohn]

That's untrue, there are more.

Interesting comment in the following link which mentions a number of factors

Unlike the Major government, Labour has paid all the nurses' pay reviews in full in one stage. In 1997 the starting salary was raised by 14%, which had a good effect on recruitment.
Now Mr Blair and Mr Milburn are trying to reward the "supernurses" they talked of in 1997 without angering other groups.

LOL If you watched C4 news you would have seen a man from the IMF arriving and asked about the nurses. He can't afford it and will regret i etc. A brit too.

Not a paper that I'd rely on but it does mention some factors that did happen.

Labour gambles on modest rise for nurses

The health secretary, Alan Milburn, will today take a huge gamble on NHS morale by offering many of Britain's 450,000 nurses a pay rise just above the current 3.2% rate of inflation, while giving a more generous £1,000 to their more senior colleagues. Michael White reports

www.theguardian.com

 

[Justin Passing]

Have they found some haven in commerce/industry that pays better for less hours?

Or, are they signing up to the agencies that will put them back exactly where they were last week for 3-5x the cost???

In many cases, it seems so.
Via agencies they can pick their shifts etc.

I read of one who left because she was earning under £30k after too long, now doing far better as an Estate Agent - what a waste of her degree.
If you think of all the transferable skills a nurse has, they're quite an attractive commodity.

One said the NHS was losing the experienced and replacing them with too many with a lot less.
That ties up with my anecdotal view as a consumer.

 

[ajohn]

I read of one who left because she was earning under £30k after too long, now doing far better as an Estate Agent - what a waste of her degree.
If you think of all the transferable skills a nurse has, they're quite an attractive commodity.

A factor that a lot of people probably don't appreciate. They could even join the police, an entirely different area.

Via agencies they can pick their shifts etc.

They can also choose to drop a shift permanently. It seems some do. There could be all sorts of circumstance and reason why a person might do that. With 12hr shifts overtime in the usual fashion isn't possible.

Rotating shifts in the real world have to attract additional salary levels against other options.

 

[transam]

wales have the power through devolution to settle any pay dispute with the Welsh NHS workers ??

So why don’t they ??

They also have the power to raise taxes in order to fund it if they want to ???

 

[ajohn]

They also have the power to raise taxes in order to fund it if they want to ???

Seems Scotland has decided to do that. Wales want more money from Westminster - effectively saying that anyway.

 

[transam]

Nurses have rejected Scotland’s offer and are going on strike

 

[johnny2007]

The NHS doesn't need more funds, it needs restructuring.
They run with too many managers and admin and very few operational staff.
Cut the red tape and things will improve.
A pay rise is well overdue for nurses and doctors, surely not for the pen pushers.
However, all of this nonsense is just a step in the plan of full privatisation.
There are already many doctors and nurses who left the nhs to work in the nhs via agencies and earning a lot more.
The nhs is wasting money by using agency staff.
A shambolic management of a great service.

 

[JohnD]

They run with too many managers and admin and very few operational staff.

That's easy to say, but is it true?

How many do they have, and how many do you think they ought to have?