8% Pay Rise Offer For Nurses And Staff Welcomed By Unions

Nurses and other NHS staff were yesterday offered a pay deal worth 8% over three years in one of the biggest recent public sector wage deals.

Unions broadly welcomed the proposals and will now consult their members on whether to accept, although doctors leaders called a separate 2.2% proposed increase for GPs “extremely disappointing”. Announcing the settlement in Scotland, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said NHS staff were being offered a “good deal”.

She had previously raised concerns that pay talks had taken place without the Scottish Government’s involvement but yesterday’s deal saw the same terms offered on both sides of the border. In the proposal, nurses, midwives and other allied health professionals are to get a 2.75% wage rise this year. The deal will also see them get a 2.4% increase in 2009-10 and a further rise of 2.25% the year after.

While Ms Sturgeon described the deal as “the best deal for any group of public sector staff” she also said she had concerns about the process. It was reported last week that the pay talks opened in London without the knowledge of ministers in the devolved administrations, prompting Ms Sturgeon and ministers from Wales and Northern Ireland to write to UK Health Secretary Alan Johnson.

Ms Sturgeon said: “Although I am delighted to announce today a good deal for nurses and other NHS staff groups, I have made it clear that I have concerns about the process.

“That is why I insisted that Scottish Government officials and Scottish employers were closely involved in the negotiations at the end of last week.

“I will continue discussions with my colleagues in other devolved administrations and with the Department of Health to ensure we are fully involved in all major decisions affecting Scotland.”

The Health Secretary said that as well as providing “fair and reasonable” increases for the staff involved, the pay deal would provide improved pay for staff at the lower end of the NHS pay scale.

Ms Sturgeon also announced that the recommendations of the Doctors and Dentists Pay Review Body were being accepted in full in Scotland for 2008-09. This includes a 2.2% increase for hospital doctors, as well as hospital doctors and dentists in training.

There will be a 3.4% increase in the gross earnings base for general dental practitioners, which should give a 2.2% increase in income after allowing for an increase in expenses. And payments to GP practices which provide core services will rise by 2.7%, which take into account the cost of expenses, resulting in a 2.2% increase in earnings.

The British Medical Association (BMA) described the deal as “extremely disappointing”. Dr Hamish Meldrum, BMA chairman, said: “It is clear that the treatment of junior doctors is completely unacceptable. The loss of free hospital accommodation means doctors graduating from medical school with massive debts will effectively be losing £400 a month. It makes the government’s promises to increase the diversity of the medical profession look completely hollow.”

The pay deal was announced as a new code of conduct for Scotland’s 64,000 nurses and midwives was released. The code aims to clarify expectations by setting out what is expected of them.