Green Party trade unionists have backed SOS NHS, a new campaign effort pushing for short- and long-term funding for the NHS.

The campaign, launched by Keep Our NHS Public at an online rally on Wednesday 19th January, has set its sights on three key demands: emergency funding to address short-term funding gaps; long-term investment in a publicly-run health service; a pay rise for NHS workers.

SOS NHS has a wide range of backers, from unions including the GMB, PCS, NEU and NASUWT to medical campaign groups including MedAct and NHS Workers Say NO!.

At the rally Green Party Deputy Leader Amelia Womack told supporters: “The quality of your care should not depend on the depth of your pocket. We will keep fighting for the basic principles of the NHS and social care.!

Check out the campaign’s website for more information on how to get involved and show support.

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With speakers:
John McDonnell MPJohn Lister – Health Campaigns Together editorHolly Turner – NHS Nurse & NHS Workers Say NO! #NHSPay15 campaignerMatthew Dore-Weeks – Unite repDiscussion chaired by Alia Butt from NHS Staff Voices *TONIGHT* 27th July @ 7pm – REGISTER:

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NHS unions have slammed the government’s proposed 3% pay offer for NHS workers on Agenda for Change contracts.

GMB National Officer, Rachel Harrison said:

“NHS staff are on their knees – exhausted, fatigued and anxious – as we look set to enter another wave of the covid pandemic. Staff morale is rock bottom.

“This was the opportunity for Government to turn their clapping in to genuine recognition. Their response is paltry. They have failed spectacularly. NHS workers know their worth and so do the public – shame on the government who don’t.”

Writing to Green Party members the day after the announcement, oncology nurse and founder of grassroots campaign NHS Workers Say NO! said:

“We have been denied proper PPE, overworked, and literally required to put our lives on the line just to do our jobs. This is something that no-one should have to do at work.

“I am so proud of the lifesaving work that over one million NHS staff have done during the pandemic. But at the same time, I am furious at what this government has done to all of us.

“And after all this, the government announced it would be offering NHS workers just 3% as a pay rise this year. After 18 months of the Covid pandemic, I believe that NHS workers deserve a real pay rise.”

Since 2010, most NHS workers have seen their pay fall by at least 10%. Workers on Band 5 of the Agenda for Change pay scale – the band with the most workers on it – have seen their pay fall by more than 15% in real terms.

Agenda for Change is the main national pay scale for NHS workers. It covers over one million staff, including nurses and occupational therapists. It does not cover doctors, senior managers or those employed by arms-length bodies like General Practices and private contractors.

According to the King’s Fund, there were the equivalent of 84,000 full-time posts unfilled in the NHS in England in 2020, leading unions including the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) to warn of a structural crisis of staffing in the NHS caused by persistent low pay.

Unions including the GMB, RCN, UNISON and Unite the Union are consulting members on their response to the pay offer.

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The three big issues facing NHS workers today:

The impact on Covid on the NHS workforce has already been dramatic. 1500 NHS workers have lost their lives keeping the public safe and while morale is low, do NHS workers feel they’re being properly equipped with the next wave of the pandemic?

The suggested pay offer for workers was 1% was an insult after years of pay freeze and covid sacrifice. We’ll know soon what the Government is really offering? Will they see sense and grant workers pay justice, or will they cause a crisis in the NHS workforce with more insults?

The new Health and Care Bill, which was passed this week, allows for the most far-reaching selling off, partitioning, and restructuring of the NHS we’ve seen, and poses a serious threat to the founding principles of a universal health care service.

Join us to hear from NHS Staff themselves talking about how these huge issues affect them and our NHS workers and the broader social movements can come together to fightback. Organised by Keep Our NHS Public and NHS Staff Voices.

MEETING JULY 27th 7PM

REGISTER HERE NOW: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMlc-mhqTkrGtx_qvYbJfO6usAqOugyGIsr

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