TEACHERS and nurses may strike after the government recommended a 2.8 per cent pay rise for public sector workers for the next financial year.
Ministers cautioned that higher pay awards would require cuts in Whitehall budgets.
The British Medical Association (BMA) criticised the proposal, with its chair, Philip Banfield, stating that it demonstrates a “poor grasp” of unresolved issues, The Times reported.
“For this government to believe a 2.8 per cent pay rise is enough indicates a poor grasp of the unresolved issues from two years of industrial action,” Banfield said.
Unison, representing nearly half a million NHS workers, and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) also condemned the recommendation. Nicola Ranger, general secretary of the RCN, called the proposal “deeply offensive,” adding, “The government has today told nursing staff they are worth as little as £2 extra a day.”
The dispute follows earlier industrial actions across the public sector. Nurses and NHS staff are seeking an above-inflation increase, frustrated by this year’s 5.5 per cent rise, which was lower than the junior doctors’ 22 per cent deal over two years.
Helga Pile of Unison warned that the proposed rise “barely covers the cost of living.” She added, “The decision to push tackling the outdated pay structure back into next year means there could well be more [strikes],” the newspaper reported Read More…..
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