3% rise for NHS workers , is it enough?

[thecatmother]

With shame I admit, that I have hardly given a thought to how hard our NHS workers have it, or how little they earned. Last couple of years have really put it into perspective for me, pandemic and personal circumstances.
This news just popped on my phone screen, 3% is pitiful.

In comparison, I have a cousin who settled in the US and is a nurse in A&E(City hospital, so not private) and her salary is 83$k per year. And she lives a very comfortable life, compared perhaps to upper middle class here.
We celebrate our NHS and, on our side,we pay our taxes, so why is it only 3%?

While I totally agree re: HCA and nursing wages needing to be higher, I think there’s a lot of confusion about junior doctor wages. Currently I earn less per hour than the average nurse, and less per hour than an HCA on a Sunday. The problem is that all junior doctors work 48h/ wk (and a lot of nights / weekends) so their pay appears misleadingly high

Junior doctors also have to pay (from their wages):

• taxis home after 2am shifts
• on call rooms to sleep
• indemnity fees (extremely high for some doctors)
• royal colleges membership (££)
• exam fees (£££ per exam, most people fail the first time - and you’re revising for these unpaid in your own time too)
• GMC fees
• eportfolio fees (these are not a choice - you must have one as a junior doctor)
• student loan on 6 years of debt (up to around £100,000 + interest)

And those are just off the top of my head.

@Getyourarseofffthequattro

I don't think it is enough. NHS wages are notoriously shit. Especially for admin. Also nobody ever gives a shit about us because we aren't on the "front line" so many of us are considering leaving because we could do an easier admin job elsewhere for more money.

That's not my experience. I was an admin manager in the third sector (still at the same organisation) and I managed staff that had TUPEd from the NHS who were on a lot more than me. I changed roles as it pissed me off. None of them wanted to step into the management role as, although we would have salary matched, they would lose the NHS terms and conditions... and ours aren't too bad!

@roadwarrior

Inflation this year is 3.7%, so 3% pay rise is effectively a pay cut in real terms.

Inflation this year is 2.4%

www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices

@Getyourarseofffthequattro that's the problem. How stale must a workforce be if it never introduces people from different backgrounds where possible.
The rights, benefits discounts, pensions etc are never mentioned when it comes to pay rises. There are even special mortgages and other massive helpful schemes to help those working in the public sector which recognises how safe the jobs are.
Some of the people on here seem to think everyones entitled to a high salary. And in an ideal world it would be that way, however a public sector should benefit the public.

According to ONS

Average total pay growth for the public sector was 5.6%, whereas for the private sector was 3.7%; the large increase in public sector pay growth was mainly accounted for by a strong growth in the health and social work industry (5.8%).

This is based on Jan -Mar 21 The private sector matter too, and it isn't as easy as people make out to jump over to the public sector. It's not that I'm anti public sector or nhs sector workers having a payrise it's about recognising what is fair or not given it's all paid with using public funds. I have 15 years experience in my sector, keep up to date with my qualifications, currently doing a masters. Apparently there's chance of me entering the NHS because of reasons I've mentioned in my previous post. Every single job for the NHS which requires my experience in my area pays more than my own job in which I don't have sick pay, have to take annual leave to go to the GP, statutory maternity leave, haven't had a payrise since I started in 2019 and do many many hours over my contractual hours without overtime.

Inflation this year is 2.4%

But predicted inflation for the year ahead is 3.7%, and the 3% rise will be spread over 3 years, so is not really 3%.

I think what annoys me is that certain jobs just aren’t comparable and yet are all getting the same rise. I recently returned to practice as an Occupational Therapist and am flat out constantly. However, because I’d been a band 5 Office worker for three years, I’m now on top B5 (30.6k) Honestly, during lockdown, I spent a lot of days asleep and watching Netflix! I can tell you that it was a huge shock to the system when I returned a few months ago. I think that nurses and AHPs should have a different pay scale to admin staff and I feel I’m qualified to say this having seen it from both sides.

@Stompythedinosaur

Inflation this year is 2.4%

But predicted inflation for the year ahead is 3.7%, and the 3% rise will be spread over 3 years, so is not really 3%.

Oh, please.

A below inflation raise is an insult

Are you struggling with the maths handscreen ? You know inflation happens every year, right?

Or was there something else you don't get?

@Stompythedinosaur

Are you struggling with the maths handscreen ? You know inflation happens every year, right?

Or was there something else you don't get?

That's wild - predicted inflation is not 3.7% for 2022 in the UK. Even the scantest of knowledge (nay, even the briefest of Google searches) will give you a better idea of predicted rates.

Handscreen here is one of the many articles saying otherwise

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/business/2021/jun/20/uk-inflation-could-soar-above-4-this-year-thinktank-warns

[quote Stompythedinosaur]Handscreen here is one of the many articles saying otherwise

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/business/2021/jun/20/uk-inflation-could-soar-above-4-this-year-thinktank-warns[/quote]
From the actual article you posted:

"The Bank of England and most City economists have forecast that inflation will rise to about 3% over the rest of the year before falling back to the central bank’s target of 2% next year."

The thinktank you cite predicted 4% inflation for this summer (they were way off, the Bank of England and other grown ups were right).

Have a Google around, see what estimates you find. You will see a prediction that peaks at or above 3% for the last quarter of this year before returning to 1.5-1.8 in Q1 2022.

FWIW, I think NHS workers should get a 5% pay bump. It's the over-inflated (!) inflation argument that gets you nowhere.

The real problem is not who get it or how much. It is that it comes from existing inadequate budgets. There is no new money for trusts.

The impact of this is to make further service cuts necessary whilst still making the government look like they have been reasonable and providing evidence that the NHS is failing. It is undermining the NHS and that is significant problem.

@LemonRoses

The real problem is not who get it or how much. It is that it comes from existing inadequate budgets. There is no new money for trusts.

The impact of this is to make further service cuts necessary whilst still making the government look like they have been reasonable and providing evidence that the NHS is failing. It is undermining the NHS and that is significant problem.

Its actually criminal - but the majority of the public wont give a toss - because" Boris got Brexit done didn't he" sigh......

I'm NHS but not frontline. I'd happily forego any rise to bring back just one of the colleagues who have been lost this past year or so.

Percentages are shit. As always those at the bottoms see the least benefit.
Same with furlough. 80% of minimum wage for many, surely if min wage is a minimum that should have been paid in full. Above that is different.
The other issue is that the lowest paid nhs staff see no extra as it just comes out of the benefits they receive to top up their income in the first place. There's always money when it suits the government and now they need to find it and start paying nhs staff properly.

The thing is, the NHS is kind of split into two groups, operational and non operational.
The surgeons and doctors, nurses are on the frontline saving lives.
But there’s lots of staff who aren’t medically trained.
The NHS is management heavy with too many bean counters.
But it’s all from the public purse gravy train.
The NHS needs serious reform, but it seems to be some sacred cow that can’t be touched.

@roadwarrior

Inflation this year is 3.7%, so 3% pay rise is effectively a pay cut in real terms.

Think about other public sector who also worked through the pandemic and are getting nothing... it's a insult to every other public sector service that also worked throughout the pandemic and keep communities and people safe.

It’s not just the pay rise either , it’s the pension costs to.

I mean, is anyone getting a raise this year? My company usually follows the 2% inflation guide. But, I got 0% and no bonus, two years in a row. And I'm below the national average by a lot for a highly trained job as a technically 'essential worker'.

NHS workers should definitely be paid more especially considering their work this year. But nobody has any fucking money. And it's devastating. Our country needs to up wages across the board. The fact that it's legal to pay anyone less than £20k a year for full time work is gross.

@Stompythedinosaur

Inflation this year is 2.4%

But predicted inflation for the year ahead is 3.7%, and the 3% rise will be spread over 3 years, so is not really 3%.

Well many of us got 0% so I'd take 3% in a heart beat

Well many of us got 0% so I'd take 3% in a heart beat

Have you also had a 20% pay cut over the last ten years? This issue isn't just about this year.

@CorianderBee

This is how the government drags us all down, because people let themselves be manipulated by the government into being bitter due to petty jealousy.

I'm also getting 0%, but I was taught two wrongs don't make a right. 3% is not enough.