Sarah Frances has worked as a nurse at The Christie hospital in south Manchester for over a decade. It's a job she's always loved.
But as the cost of living soars, and her pay fails to keep up, by the time she's paid for childcare, the mum says she is left with very little spare cash at the end of the month.
Fortunately, her partner's income is able to support them both, so she can continue doing the job she's always wanted. She says it shouldn't be like this.
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As a Band 5 nurse, Sarah earns just under an £18 an hour - that's despite having worked for the NHS for over 10 years. She says she has often considered changing to a job with better pay, or more sociable hours.
She is one of many nurses across the country who is taking part in industrial action today (May 1). The latest round of strikes coordinated by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) union began at 8pm on Sunday (April 30) and will finish at 11.59pm today.
Waving placards demanding 'fair pay for nursing staff', Sarah joined a picket line outside The Christie hospital on Wilmslow Road this morning - along with dozens of her colleagues.
As they stood chanting 'what do we want? Fair pay' and 'when do we want it? Now', they were supported by onlookers who beeped their car horns or shouted messages of encouragement from across the road.
The RCN announced the latest 28-hour strike after voting to reject the latest government offer of 5 per cent. The union says the real-terms pay cut their members have been experiencing for years is pushing people out of the nursing profession and putting patient safety at risk.
Comparing the state of her profession from when she first nursing, Sarah says some of the things she sees in her job now would have been 'unthinkable' 10 years ago.
"People waiting for hours and hours in A&E without being seen, the ratios of nurse to patients, and the level of care patients get when they need it are vastly different," she said.
"When I first started nursing those things would have been practically unthinkable. Now that is becoming the standard of what you expect when you come to work which is really sad."
Sarah says the pay nurses receive is a major factor in why the profession is so critically understaffed - leading to more pressure for her and her colleagues.
"If you're going to commit to a job that is really demanding and has unsociable hours - can you do it for the money the government are offering," she asked.
"When you look at graduates there's something like 15,000 jobs short in the UK which is most likely due to the fact we've had a massive real terms pay cut.
"For me personally it means my partner has to support me to do the job I want to be able to do. Luckily he can work very hard and do that but if we were both nurses one of us would have to quit our job.
"I love my job and my patients, but I'm at the very top of my band so I can't earn any more in my role. I get just under £18 an hour which is okay, but sometimes it makes me question whether I should just get a better paid job or one with more sociable hours."
The Royal College of Nursing is calling on the government to offer a pay increase to members that is 5pc above inflation - which currently stands at just over 10pc.
Leah Hutchinson-Saxon, who has worked at The Christie for four years, says some of her colleagues are struggling so much financially, they're having to rely on foodbanks.
"Nurses or people from any profession shouldn't be going to foodbanks. People shouldn't be struggling and that's what is happening and it's just not fair," she said.
"I've had to cut back on certain things but I have a little girl as well and she comes first and I'm having to do bank shifts as well just to be able to support her. I wouldn't have to do that if I was paid fairly."
The mum-of-one says she fears the current pay offer isn't enough to attract new graduates into the profession, which in turn is leading to a shortage of nurses.
"At the moment I don't think people want to work in nursing," she said. "Why would you want to do what you're passionate about when you could go and work in a supermarket and earn more money.
"We want our patients to be safe but there are so many nurses leaving the profession because of pay. We deserve the pay for what we are actually doing.
"We are taking care of patients 24 hours a day and that doesn't just stop when we finish our shift, we go home and still think about those patients. They are on our mind 24 hours a day, seven days a week."
Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, described the latest round of industrial action as 'premature' and 'disrespectful' to the other nursing trade unions who are meeting to discuss the government's current pay offer on Tuesday (2 May).
Under the NHS Staff Council, the unions will consider the offer of a 5 pc pay increase for 2023/24 along with a one-off payment worth between £1,655 and £3,789 for the current financial year for nurses in England.
Head of the RCN, Pat Cullen defended nurses and urged Mr Barclay to 'get round this table immediately' to resolve the dispute.
Read more of today's top stories here.
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