Unite comments on the delivery of a seven-day NHS.
Unite statement on the report from the NHS Pay Review Body (PRB) and the Office of Manpower Economics on the delivery of a seven-day NHS.
Unite head of health Barrie Brown said: “We welcome the fact that the Pay Review Body has demonstrated its independence on this issue, despite ministerial pressure in recent times that has either undermined or ignored its findings.
“The PRB has put the kibosh on the claims from the Department of Health and the NHS Employers that payments for unsocial hours create a barrier for delivering seven-day-a-week services.
“The heart of the matter when it comes to delivering 24/7 services is the lack of staff caused, in major part, by the continual pressure on salaries that has seen pay eroded by 14 per cent in real terms for NHS staff since 2010.
“Healthcare professionals are walking away from the NHS they love because they can no longer afford to work for the health service or take the mounting work pressures, stoked up by continual ministerial interference.
“Jeremy Hunt’s disdain in addressing the serious staffing and pay issues facing the NHS will come back to haunt this government before the next general election.”
The joint press release 15 unions that represent 1.3 million NHS workers on seven-day-a-week working can be accessed here.
