Unison health conference

Read all our coverage of Unison's annual health conference in Liverpool

Labour promises more nurse recruitment from September 2015

A ‘home-grown’ generation of nurses will begin to be recruited from September under a Labour government, shadow health secretary Andy Burnham has said.
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Pay all staff an extra £1 an hour, say Unison members

An overwhelming majority of delegates at Unison's annual health conference in Liverpool voted today in favour of a motion calling for Unison's health service group executive to propose a flat rate UK claim of £1 an hour increase on NHS pay.
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Unison leader warns of five years of ‘broken promises’ on the NHS

Another five years of a Conservative-led government could wreak ‘yet more’ havoc on the NHS, Unison general secretary Dave Prentis claims. Speaking on the first day of Unison’s annual health conference in Liverpool, Mr Prentis said the past five years of government led by prime minister David Cameron have seen broken promises about the NHS. He warned members of what he believed another five years under the Conservatives would mean for health services.
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Inadequate nurse staffing continues to threaten patient care

Nearly two thirds of nurses report that care is being ‘left undone’ because of poor staffing levels, a UK-wide survey by Unison has revealed. The union polled more than 5,000 nurses on February 10 to ‘spot test’ staffing levels on a typical day in the NHS, with 65% saying that there was care left undone due to understaffing.
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Health workers will fight plans to remove unsocial hours pay

Unison members have vowed to mount a vigorous defence against any future government plans to remove unsocial hours pay. At Unison’s annual health conference in Liverpool yesterday, health workers, including nurses and healthcare assistants, voted in favour of a motion outlining the key areas to focus on in the NHS pay campaign.
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Employers advised to plan well before implementing 12-hour shifts

Employers should plan suitable schedules of shift patterns for nurses to reduce fatigue and increase wellbeing, a nurse academic has warned. Speaking to health workers at a fringe session at Unison's annual health conference in Liverpool yesterday, University of Southampton nurse researcher Chiara Dall'Ora said employers should consider what settings and roles are suitable for implementing 12-hour shifts as opposed to the standard eight hours.
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