For the first time, this 28-hour strike affects intensive care and the oncology department, according to the union, despite some exceptions in hospitals where a shortage of nurses may endanger patients’ lives.
Nurses in Britain began a new strike on Monday, at the call of their main union, to demand higher wages in the face of inflation, a strike that will affect more services in hospitals, although its duration is reduced by court order.
This strike comes after workers in this sector, who have been carrying out an unprecedented strike movement since December since the establishment of their union, the Royal College of Nursing (Royal College of Nursing – RCN), rejected a five percent wage increase proposed by the government.
For the first time, this 28-hour strike affects intensive care and the oncology department, according to the union, despite some exceptions in hospitals where a shortage of nurses may endanger patients’ lives.
The strike is scheduled to continue until Tuesday, but its duration was reduced by a court decision that the Ministry of Health resorted to.
“To stop the strike, the Minister (of Health) must return to the negotiating table and put a better offer on the table,” Pat Callen, Secretary General of the Royal Institute of Nursing, told Sky News, calling at the same time for a recruitment process to compensate for the shortage of nurses in the country. Hospitals.
“Nurses must be paid decent wages,” she added, noting that until then “our nurses will unfortunately have no choice but to continue” with their action, while the Royal Institute of Nursing plans to hold a vote on new strikes by the end of the year.
For his part, Health Minister Steve Barclay said in a statement that this new strike was “disappointing”, denouncing the “extra pressure” it would place on the public health system, which is in crisis.
In response to a question from “Sky News”, he described this strike as “disrespectful” to others, while a meeting is scheduled for Tuesday between the government and a number of health sector unions and officials in the public health system, regarding the proposed wage increase by 5 percent.
Inflation, which exceeded ten percent in the United Kingdom, led to a series of social movements for several months to demand higher wages, in both public services and the private sector.
