Nurses in England will go on strike on January 18 and 19 unless negotiations are opened in an escalation of the ongoing pay dispute with the Government, it was announced today.
In a statement announcing the new planned industrial action, the Royal College of Nursing said: "Ministers have the power to stop strikes but have failed to open negotiations on NHS pay. Now, more hospitals in England will see strike action. These will take place on 18 and 19 January - with further dates to be confirmed in the new year."
According to a list published by the RCN, nurses at Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust; The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and Wrightington Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust will go on strike. No other trusts in Greater Manchester are listed.
The action will take place at more NHS employers in England than happened this month - increasing from 44 to 55 trusts, said the RCN. Two days of strike action were held in England, Northern Ireland and Wales on 15 and on Tuesday, but no Greater Manchester hospitals were affected. Action in the north west was taken largely in Liverpool.
Data published by NHS England revealed on Tuesday, during the RCN strike, a total of 11,509 members of staff walked out nationally, including 1,797 in the north west - all at hospitals in Merseyside.
The number of elective procedures scheduled to take place in the north west on December 20 that were rescheduled as a result of the industrial action was 107. Nationally the figure was 2,115. The number of out-patient appointments scheduled that were rescheduled in the north west was 847.
RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, Pat Cullen, said: "The Government had the opportunity to end this dispute before Christmas but instead they have chosen to push nursing staff out into the cold again in January. I do not wish to prolong this dispute, but the Prime Minister has left us with no choice."
The RCN added in a statement: "Our commitment to members is that everyone employed where strike action has been mandated, will have the opportunity to strike. The next phase of strike action will take place in England only. This is because our strike action across the UK may need to be prolonged unless governments find a way to resolve this dispute.
"Additionally, calling strike action in different employers at different times contributes to our ability to prolong strike action should we have to. The value of salaries for experienced nurses is 20% lower in real terms since 2010, due to successive below-inflation pay awards.
"Industrial action is a last resort, and the RCN is committed to negotiating improved pay deals with governments before taking strike action when the dispute cannot be resolved."
Ms Cullen said: "The public support has been heart-warming and I am more convinced than ever that this is the right thing to do for patients and the future of the NHS.
"The voice of nursing will not be ignored. Staff shortages and low pay make patient care unsafe – the sooner ministers come to the negotiating table, the sooner this can be resolved. I will not dig in, if they don’t dig in."
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