Posted 01 May 2015 - 14:45
Posted 01 May 2015 - 14:45
News
Nurses staged demonstration against cuts to unsocial hours pay
A rally was held outside Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust yesterday to call for nurses' pay for working weekends, nights and bank holidays to be protected
Nurses joined other activists to stage a rally and demonstration outside Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust yesterday in protest against plans to scrap unsocial hours payments.
Demonstrators cross Westminster Bridge en route to the DoH
L-R: Gavin Cooper Nurse Educator UCH, Janet Maiden - Deputy Sister UCH, Jennifer Morrison - Staff Nurse at Guy's and St Thomas', and organiser Mark Boothroyd.
Picture credit: Barney Newman
Organiser Mark Boothroyd, a staff nurse at the trust and Unite communications officer, argues that some nurses could lose £6,000 a year if Department of Health (DH) proposals to ditch unsocial hours payments go through.
The DH argues the changes are necessary to fund 24/7 services, but Mr Boothroyd said: ‘We need to show opposition to these proposals, which will devastate staffing levels in the NHS. Some nurses won’t be able to afford their rent and will just leave and go into agency work, where they can earn a lot more money. There are already shortages across the NHS.’