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The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is calling for a 5% increase above the rate of RPI inflation, which is currently above 14%.
This would mean more than a 19% wage increase, which the government says is unaffordable.
NHS staff in England and Wales – including nurses – have received an average rise of 4.75%. The lowest paid received a guaranteed increase of at least £1,400.
In Northern Ireland, nurses have already been told they will receive the same pay and the increase will be retroactive.
In Scotland, NHS staff were initially offered 5%, which was later changed to a flat rate of just over £2,200 – and rejected by the RCN.
An offer of improved pay, averaging 7.5%, has since been made and has been accepted by some unions.
Others, including the RCN, are still considering it.
The RCN says this year’s award for below-inflation pay follows years of shrinking nurses’ pay. It said average nursing pay fell by 6% between 2011 and 2021 – after inflation is taken into account – compared with a 4.6% drop for the entire UK workforce.
The RCN says this compromises care because it means the NHS struggles to attract and retain nurses.
But the government said this year’s pay rise was in line with what was recommended by the independent NHS pay review body.
Read more here.
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