Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) pulled out of a pay and patient safety dispute in December for the first time in their 106-year history.
With two more strikes scheduled for January, the RCN has now announced that it has set the date for its largest strike to date to early February if collective bargaining with the government does not move quickly.
But when do nurses strike in England, and why? Here’s everything you need to know.
When do nurses strike in England?
Nurses in England are on strike on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th January.
However, RCN has announced that further strikes are planned if wage negotiations do not take place before the end of January.
When RCN members go on strike in February, they will join nurses in Wales who must already take action.
The strike is for the safety of patients, which means that some nurses will continue to take action. Derogations—exclusions of a member or service from going on strike—were made to allow actions to follow the RCN’s “life-saving model”.
RCN said: “Patient safety is always of paramount importance. Unlike many other sectors, some nurses continue to work during the strike. This is carefully negotiated with employers in advance to ensure patient safety.
Elsewhere, paramedics left on Wednesday, Jan. 11 and will strike a second day on Monday, Jan. 23, in a separate dispute.
Where is the strike?
The following trusts have reached the voting threshold for strike action and will exit on Wednesday, January 18 and Thursday, January 19:
East Midlands
- NHS Derby and Derbyshire ICB (Joined Up Care Derbyshire)
- Derbyshire Health Trust NHS Foundation Trust
- Derbyshire Public Health Service NHS Foundation Trust
East
- Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
- Public Health and Nursing Norfolk NHS Trust
- Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
- West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS Central & South Essex ICB
- NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB
London
- Hounslow and Richmond Public Health NHS Trust
- St. George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust
- University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS South West London ICB
northwest
- Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust University Hospitals
- Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Christie NHS Foundation Trust
- Wrightington Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust
- Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Middle Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Public Health Bridgewater NHS Foundation Trust
- Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS Cheshire and Merseyside ICB
- St. Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
- NHS Lancashire & South Cumbria ICB
- Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
North
- County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
- South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- CSU Northern England (NECS)
Southeast
- Kent Community Health Foundation Trust
- East Sussex Health Care NHS Trust
- University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust
- Sussex Community NHS Foundation
- Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
- Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS Kent and Medway ICB
- NHS Surrey Heartlands ICB
- NHS Southern Health Fund Trust
- Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust
- University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
southwest
- Cornish Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
- Dorset Health University NHS Foundation Trust
- Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
- Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust
- Teaching Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust
- Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
- Royal Hospitals of Cornwall NHS Trust
- NHS Dorset ICB (Our Dorset)
western middle earth
- Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
- Shropshire Public Health NHS Trust
- Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust
- NHS Black Country ICB
- Midlands and Lancashire CSU
Yorkshire and the Humber
- Sheffield Health and Welfare Trust NHS Foundation Trust
- Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
- Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS Sheffield Children’s Fund Trust
- NHS West Yorkshire ICB
Why are the nurses on strike?
According to the RCN, low wages lead to “chronic underemployment” that puts patients at risk and causes caregivers to be overworked, underpaid and undervalued.
RCN general secretary Pat Cullen has asked the union to agree to a 10% pay rise this year after he said he could accommodate ministers “halfway through” the government’s rejected 19% demand, but the government refused to agree to it.
Ms Cullen called the prime minister’s approach to the talks “stunning.”
She said: “The shortage of nurses is costing lives – Sunak can’t appreciate a safe NHS.”
However, the government claims that nurses have been offered “fair” wages and that it has “fully” accepted the recommendations of an independent pay review body.
Source: I News
I’m Raymond Molina, a professional writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. I currently work for 24 News Reporters, where I write for the health section of their news website. In my role, I am responsible for researching and writing stories on current health trends and issues. My articles are often seen as thought-provoking pieces that provide valuable insight into the state of society’s wellbeing.