NHS nurses’ pay is unfinished business, insists Pat Cullen
Posted 12 June 2023 - 04:59
In a revealing podcast interview, RCN leader admits winning a further strike mandate will be a ‘tight call’, and opens up about what motivates her
Nursing staff have unfinished business with the government and deserve more than the current pay awards, RCN leader Pat Cullen said in an interview with Nursing Standard.
Speaking on the Nursing Standard podcast for the first time, Ms Cullen once again called on ministers in England to reopen pay talks after RCN members rejected the pay deal.
The college is currently balloting for a further six months of industrial action over both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 pay awards. It has warned strikes could carry on until Christmas if it secures a fresh mandate.
‘Nurses deserve more and better than they offer they rejected’
Ms Cullen tells the podcast: ‘Our members deserve the new mandate because there is what I call unfinished business with the government.
‘Nurses deserve more and better than the offer they have rejected, and I think government ministers should do what they very much can – search their conscience and look to what is required to get nursing to a different place.’
She urges the government to cultivate a different relationship with nurses, adding: ‘If they approach it that way, rather than the adversarial relationship they currently have, then they will do the right thing and prevent nurses having to take further strike action.’
Speaking about whether she thinks RCN members will support more strikes, Ms Cullen says it would be a ‘tight call’ due to nurses’ fear of losing pay amid soaring living costs. But if the ballot does not deliver the required level of endorsement, it does not mean the issue of nurses’ pay is close, Ms Cullen adds.
Dealing with social media backlash over RCN’s pay recommendation
In the wide-ranging interview, Ms Cullen reveals what motivates her to continue the fight for better pay for nursing, and shares a heart-breaking story a striking nurse who came from overseas to work in the UK.
She addresses the RCN’s decision to recommend the government’s pay offer that members subsequently rejected and explains how she dealt with the social media backlash.
The special edition of the podcast will be available on our website and through Spotify and Apple Podcasts on 14 June.
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