Anyone who has been on a hospital ward knows how vital hard-working nurses are to the NHS.
They showed their worth during lockdown when they took care of our loved ones, even though they were putting their own health at risk. They are facing incredible extra demands as winter bugs lead to bed shortages in hospitals.
This is in addition to the extra workload many face due to 6000 nursing vacancies currently going unfilled. It is no surprise that our nurses feel undervalued.
There are even reports that many are quitting the profession to find work in supermarkets, where there is comparable pay and much less responsibility. So it was no surprise yesterday to find that members of the Royal College of Nursing have voted to reject a Government pay offer.
Who can blame members for demanding a fairer deal? Their anger at the current pay offer isn’t based on one year’s pay negotiations, it is the culmination of years of below-inflation rises.
Some people say nurses going on strike will put patients’ lives at risk – but patients are already under threat from chronic understaffing on our wards. If we are to solve long-term issues in recruiting and retaining highly skilled nurses then we have to place greater value on these medical professionals.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf points to the record pay deal being offered and says there is no more money in the pot. But if the Scottish Government is going to increase taxes to pay for improved public services there is no better use of that money than giving nurses a pay rise worthy of their status.
We clapped for our NHS heroes. Now it is time to give nurses the hard cash they deserve for doing one of the toughest jobs in the country.
Special delivery
Another group of heroes that grafted through lockdown in tough circumstances are those who toil on the North Sea rigs. But for one group of Scots working in the Danish sector of the North Sea it was looking like a bleak Christmas.
Harsh weather conditions had delayed their transport off the rigs. Crucially that meant they wouldn’t get home to see their loved ones for the festive break.
That was until the Record stepped in. After our story appeared on their plight, the French company which operates the rig sprang into action. It ordered extra helicopters to take workers to the mainland and vowed to get staff off the rig and home in time for Christmas.
That’s a great result for the rig workers and their families. And it’s proof that the Record is the newspaper that will always deliver for our loyal readers.
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