{"id":2273,"date":"2014-11-20T15:58:25","date_gmt":"2014-11-20T15:58:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=2273"},"modified":"2014-11-21T11:34:37","modified_gmt":"2014-11-21T11:34:37","slug":"berlin-wall-intransigence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=2273","title":{"rendered":"Berlin Wall of intransigence"},"content":{"rendered":"
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NHS staff across England and Northern Ireland will gear up for a second four-hour strike on Monday (November 24), after health secretary Jeremy Hunt has persisted in his refusal to start talks with health workers, who were denied a one per cent pay rise earlier this year.<\/p>\n

 
\nThe one per cent rise, recommended by an independent pay review body (PRB), was unequivocally rejected by the government in April, despite the PRB confirming that the across-the-board one percent rise would be entirely affordable.<\/p>\n

 
\nUnite head of health Rachael Maskell denounced Hunt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s wilful silence, saying, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bAs ministers ponder their departmental legacies as May\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s general election looms, Jeremy Hunt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ministerial epithet will be: \u00e2\u20ac\u0098I did not talk to hardworking NHS staff on pay\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe understand that MPs from all parties have been urging Hunt to start talks, but, so far, he is cowering behind a Berlin Wall of intransigence,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she added.<\/p>\n

 
\nMaskell argued that health workers, after being pummelled year on year with deep, real-terms pay cuts, have no other option but to strike.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe 1.35 million NHS workforce has been forced, reluctantly, to take strike action on Monday as they have seen their incomes eroded by 15 per cent since the coalition came to power in May 2010,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Maskell said.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe expect a strong turn-out buoyed up by very welcome continuing public support, following the four hour action last month,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she added.<\/p>\n

 
\nHunt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s stubborn refusal to begin talks stands in marked contrast to Scotland and Wales\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 concessions on health workers\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 pay.<\/p>\n

 
\nIn Scotland, the devolved government has agreed to pay the one per cent pay rise to all staff as recommended by the PRB and to implement the Living Wage by paying an extra \u00c2\u0141300 to low paid workers. Unite accepted this and, therefore, did not ballot its members in Scotland.<\/p>\n

 
\nThe Welsh government health and social services minister Mark Drake ford announced that NHS workers will receive a non-consolidated cash payment of \u00c2\u0141187 for this year, with one per cent pledged for the next financial year 2015\/16. The Living Wage will also be introduced in the New Year.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe contrast in the attitude between the financially challenged Welsh government and the hard line adopted by Hunt could not be greater,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 said Maskell. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt is time for Hunt to get around the negotiating table in good faith.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nUnite highlighted this disparity of outcome between England and Wales in a letter to Hunt today.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe tight financial situation is more severe in Wales than England, however, an outcome has been achieved,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 the letter noted.<\/p>\n

 
\nMonday\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s strike will commence at 7am and will run until 11am in England. In Northern Ireland, the strike will run from 8am and end at noon. The strike will be followed by eight weeks of working to rule.<\/p>\n

 
\nStay tuned on UNITElive.org for the latest on the dispute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NHS staff across England and Northern Ireland will gear up for a second four-hour strike on Monday (November 24), after health secretary Jeremy Hunt has persisted in his refusal to start talks with health workers, who were denied a one per cent pay rise earlier this year.   The one per cent rise, recommended by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2274,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[29,130,88,132],"wps_subtitle":"Hunt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s NHS legacy: \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t talk to health workers on pay\u00e2\u20ac\u0165","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2273"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2273"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2275,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2273\/revisions\/2275"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2274"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}