UK’s Royal College of Nursing Votes for First Ever Nationwide Strike
A member of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) attends a protest for increased wages
James TweedieNurses are now set to join rail, postal and dockworkers among those who have walked out on strike as employers’ pay offers fail to keep up with soaring inflation amid the energy crisis prompted by sanctions on Russia.The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has voted for the first national strike in the trade union’s 106-year history over payThe RCN announced the result of its ballot of some 300,000 members on Wednesday afternoon.More than half the total membership backed strike action in demand of a pay rise five per cent above the Retail Price Index (RPI) rate of inflation, currently running at 12 percent amid the cost-of-living crisis prompted by sanctions on Russian energy imports.Pat Cullen, the RCN’s general secretary and chief executive thanked members for taking part in the ballot, saying they could be “very proud” and the result was “strong and clear.”
"This is a defining moment in our history, and our fight will continue through strike action and beyond for as long as it takes to win justice for the nursing profession and our patients," Cullen said. "Anger has become action — our members are saying enough is enough."
The nurses’ leader said the profession’s voice was “strong” and she would “make sure it is heard.” She called on the government to allocate funding to improve its previous offer of a three per cent rise, made when new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was still chancellor of the exchequer.”Our members will no longer tolerate a financial knife-edge at home and a raw deal at work,” Cullen said. “Ministers must look in the mirror and ask how long they will put nursing staff through this.”The RCN did not announce strike dates, but had earlier assured that its members would continue critical care at National Health Service (NHS) hospitals affected.Nurses complain that the government has yet to compensate them for the public sector pay freeze imposed under former PM David Cameron from 2010 as part of austerity measures in response to the 2008 “Credit Crunch” banking crisis.
Opinion & AnalysisBritish Postal Worker: Royal Mail Bosses Have Been Shocked by Level of Support for Strikes16 October, 05:26 GMTThe RCN is just the latest of many British unions to call strikes across various sectors since the summer as the energy crisis caused a knock-on effect on the prices of other necessities.Railway, seaport and postal workers have all walked out over pay offers that fail to keep up with soaring inflation. Even barristers threatened to follow suit, before accepting the Department of Justice’s offer of a 15 percent increase in legal aid fees after other reforms were pledged as a sweetener.
