People across the country are being asked to put colourful posters in their windows in support of a proper NHS pay rise, in a campaign launched today by health unions representing more than a million health workers.
Fourteen unions – including UNISON, the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives – are urging households across the UK to show their appreciation for NHS workers with bright, hand-finished displays on Thursday 1 April.
The unions say this will show the public strength of feeling on the day NHS staff should have received a wage increase and be a welcome ‘thank you’ for all their tireless efforts over the past year to keep everyone safe.
Delays mean health workers – including cleaners, porters, physiotherapists, 999 call handlers, nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants – must now wait until later in the year for the wage rise they are due. To make matters worse, say unions, the government has proposed a rise of just 1%.
UNISON South West regional secretary Joanne Kaye said: “Everyone can join the NHS ‘thank you’ with an eye-catching window show. The brighter the better to bring cheer to everyone’s street and to those giving their all in our national health service.
“Living in Bristol, one of my highlights from the first lockdown was my daily walk and seeing all the incredible rainbows in people’s windows.
“The public have shown they genuinely value health workers. But the government’s 1% pay offer simply isn’t good enough.
“Ministers must display more imagination and heart. The Scottish government’s already shown if the will is there, the money can be found.”
