Hundreds of healthcare workers at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth are to take three further days of strike action next week, says UNISON today (Thursday).
Healthcare assistants, maternity care assistants, imaging care assistants and clinical support workers at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust are set to walk out from midnight on Wednesday 17 July for 72 hours.
Next week’s three-day walkout is the second time the support staff have taken action. It follows a 48-hour strike last month.
The workers, who provide vital support to nurses and other clinical staff, are demanding fair pay that better reflects their important role in patient care.
Despite their responsibilities increasing, this has not been recognised by the trust nor have the staff been paid properly, UNISON adds.
According to NHS guidance, healthcare assistants on Agenda for Change salary band 2 should only be providing personal care, such as bathing and feeding patients.
However, the support staff are routinely undertaking clinical tasks, says UNISON. These include taking and monitoring blood, performing electrocardiogram tests, and inserting cannulas.
The NHS guidance says staff performing these more complex duties should be on salary band 3, which is almost £2,000 a year more. The long service of many of the health workers means they should be at the top of that band, says the union.
UNISON is calling for the support staff to be moved to the correct grade and to receive back pay for their previous work, based on how long they’ve worked at the hospital.
UNISON says other NHS trusts have already moved healthcare assistants to the correct salary band and agreed deals on back pay. For example, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust recently regraded its health support staff, awarding back pay to March 2017 in some cases.
But University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust has, so far, failed to draw up a similar agreement, says UNISON.
UNISON South West regional secretary Kerry Baigent said: “It’s time University Hospitals Plymouth followed the lead of other trusts in the South West and paid its healthcare assistants fairly.
“The support workers are not prepared to have their hard work undervalued any longer. Walking out is the last thing they want to do, but the trust has left them with no other choice.
“Managers should do the right thing now, deliver re-banding and back pay for everyone to avoid any further disruption for patients.”
Imaging care assistant and UNISON rep Leon Shrigley said: “I love my job. But we all feel very taken for granted. The hospital couldn’t function without us. We care for people who are very unwell and work in a high-pressure acute situation.
“My colleagues and I regularly perform clinical observations and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). It’s insulting when you think that we could all earn more an hour working as a barista in a coffee shop.”
