The government must bypass the independent panel that reviews NHS pay to ensure staff receive a pay increase on time in April, major health unions have warned.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN), Unison and Unite have today written to health and social care secretary Wes Streeting, urging him to hold direct pay talks with unions rather than wait for the completion of the NHS Pay Review Body (NHSPRB) processes before awarding a wage increase.
Their letter to the minister says a million NHS Staff in England, including nurses, health visitors and healthcare assistants will not receive a pay rise on time in April if the government waits for the pay review body to report.
The unions have dismissed the pay review body system as ‘inefficient, outdated and not fit for purpose’ and are calling on the government and NHS employers to hold direct pay talks with unions instead.
In the letter to Mr Streeting, the unions warn that the ‘out-of-date’ review body risks repeating past mistakes and is at odds with the government’s vision for the NHS.
‘The pay review body process is outdated and belongs to a bygone age. It takes forever, is bureaucratic and is inefficient too,’ it said.
‘Scrapping this would save tens of thousands of pounds and spare the NHS, the government and other health organisations the many hours it currently takes to compile, submit and present evidence.’
When this year’s NHS pay rise of 5.5% was announced in summer, the health secretary also agreed to provide funding and a mandate to fix the Agenda for Change (AfC) pay structure.
The unions warn that failure to finalise new pay rates by 1 April next year also means workers on the lowest NHS pay bands will fall below the national living wage.
The national living wage is increasing to £12.21 an hour for workers aged 21 and over in April 2025. The lowest-paid NHS staff currently earn 13p below that, at £12.09 per hour.
The unions say that the government must ‘ditch’ the current pay process ‘for good’ if the health service is to be fit for the future.
They argue it would be quicker and more effective to finalise next year’s pay increase during wider planned walks on wage scales and job structures, rather than having a ‘twin-track’ approach.
Unions and employers making up the NHS staff council negotiating body are still awaiting the green light from government to get these promised talks underway.
With time running out, an NHS pay rise could be discussed at the same time, the unions have said.
Doing so through a streamlined wage rise process could use up ‘fewer resources, and more importantly, deliver next year’s pay rise on the day it’s due’, the letter continues.
RCN general secretary and chief executive professor Nicola Ranger said: ‘Our members need action and clarity on their future now so we can rebuild the nursing profession, the NHS and modernise the way care is delivered.
‘That is why we need to get round the table for meaningful discussions. We have taken this approach in the interests of nurses, the patients and communities we serve, and the NHS itself.’
Today is the deadline for evidence to the NHS pay review body, but the three unions are not submitting anything this year.
This is the third year running that Unison and Unite haven’t submitted evidence to the review body, whilst the RCN previously declined to submit evidence during the 2022/23 pay dispute.
Earlier this month an exclusive Nursing in Practice survey revealed that half of general practice nursing staff in the UK have not yet received a pay rise for 2024/25.
Our survey of more than 550 nursing staff working in GP practices, including general practice nurses (GPNs), found only one in six (16%) were awarded the 6% recommended by the government in England.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘We know how important it is to give certainty on 2025 to 2026 pay settlements as early as possible, which is why the pay setting process was started in September, the earliest it has been for years.
‘We encourage all stakeholders in the pay setting process to provide evidence this year, as this enables the Pay Review Bodies to make the best possible recommendations.’
