NHS midwives and maternity support workers in England have accepted a new pay deal following ‘intense negotiations’ with the Government.
Just over half, or 57 percent, voted to accept the deal. 43 percent rejected it, based on a turnout of 48 percent of NHS members working in England.
Despite accepting the offer, bosses from the trade union of Royal College of Midwives said it was ‘not perfect’.
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“The offer was not perfect, and it was not everything we asked for or that midwives and maternity super workers (MSWs) deserve,” said Alice Sorby, Director of Employment Relations at the RCM. “However, it was a step forward from the Government’s entrenched position on 2022/23 pay and improved on its directions to the Pay Review Body for 2023/24. “It was the power of the collective unions standing together, with our members behind us, that brought the Government to the table and led to this improved offer.”
The pay offer builds on the consolidated £1,400 - or 4 percent for most RCM members - pay award already imposed for 2022/23. The offer included a non-consolidated lump sum of 2 percent of an individual’s salary, plus a one-off ‘backlog bonus’.
The lump will be worth at least £1,250, with many midwives receiving over £2,000. For 2023/24 there will be a consolidated 5 percent pay award and an increase to band one and the bottom of band 2 of 10.4 percent. This will see entry-level pay in the NHS increase to £11.45 per hour, bringing a much-needed uplift for lower paid staff, says the RCM.
Alice Sorby added: “I hope now that we can move forward and work together to resolve the issues facing maternity services. This is also about staffing levels, lack of investment and improving working conditions for staff and better care for women, because you cannot have one without the other.
“Just last week the Government said that the pressure on maternity services was unsustainable. The midwives and MSWs who should rightly receive this pay offer have known that for a long, long time, and many are leaving because the strain is simply too much.
“We still need to stem the tide of people leaving the NHS. That needs more investment and more staff, and quickly.”
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