NHS members of the union Unite in Wales have rejected a 3.6% pay award for 2025\/26 and have indicated they are prepared to take strike action, it has been announced.\n<\/p>\n
Unite said NHS staff were \u2018furious\u2019 with their pay and conditions and urged the Welsh Government to provide an improved offer \u2018before it\u2019s too late\u2019.\n<\/p>\n
In a consultation organised by the union, some 87% of respondents rejected the pay award and said they would be prepared to take industrial action \u2018to try to achieve a better and fairer pay increase\u2019. <\/p>\n
Related Article: <\/strong> New \u2018first-of-its-kind\u2019 adult social care nursing faculty<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Unite has not provided details on the response rate or the results of its ballot of members in England.\n<\/p>\n The governments in England and Wales<\/a> announced in April they had accepted the NHS pay review body\u2019s recommendation and that staff will receive a 3.6% pay uplift in August (backdated to April).\n<\/p>\n Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: \u2018The government in Wales needs to address critical problems now. <\/p>\n \u2018And the biggest is the pay and conditions of frontline workers without whom the NHS cannot survive.\u2019\n<\/p>\n She added: \u2018Workers cannot wait any longer for decent pay and better conditions.\n<\/p>\n \u2018Any further exodus from the workplace will simply see the NHS in Wales fail to function. The Senedd needs to come back with an improved pay offer before it\u2019s too late.\u2019 <\/p>\n Related Article: <\/strong> Almost 2,000 GPs recruited through ARRS<\/a>\n<\/p>\n Unite, which has a particularly high ambulance services staff membership, warned that unless the Welsh Government opens up pay negotiations with unions, it will have \u2018no choice\u2019 but to start the formal industrial action ballot process.\n<\/p>\n Unite lead health officer for Wales Paul Seppman said: \u2018Our sincere desire is to negotiate a better and much deserved pay increase for our members and NHS staff but our members are prepared to take action if there is no improved award.\n<\/p>\n \u2018Morale in the NHS in Wales is at rock bottom. For over a decade staff have seen real terms cuts to their salaries and simply cannot take any more. The Welsh government must act now to rectify this situation.\u2019\n<\/p>\n Separately, the RCN is currently consulting its NHS members in Wales, England and Northern Ireland on the 3.6% award. <\/p>\n