The health minister confirmed that he would ask the High Court to declare the threat of a nurses’ strike illegal, leading to a sharp escalation in tensions with the Royal College of Nursing.
The government and NHS employers say the 48-hour strike, which will begin at 8:00 pm Sunday (April 30) and end the following Tuesday evening (May 2), is in violation of union members’ statutory strike mandate.
Officials claim that because the union’s original strike vote ended at 12 noon on November 2, 2022, the mandate will expire at 12 noon on May 2, while the RCN claims it will run until midnight that day.
After 11 hours of unsuccessful negotiations with union officials, Health Secretary Steve Barclay said he would now “unfortunately” ask the Supreme Court to declare the strike illegal.
He said: “Despite the efforts of my officials to resolve the RCN situation this weekend, I have no choice but to sue.
“I am strongly in favor of the right to strike within the law, but the government cannot stand by and allow illegal strikes to continue and ignore the calls of NHS employers.
“We must also protect nurses by making sure they are not recruited to take part in an illegal strike.”
In a letter to RCN General Secretary Pat Cullen, he said: “I was hoping you would think this weekend and propose to end the strike on June 2nd.
“My team told you on Saturday that if you cancel the strike on Tuesday and agree to reasonable exceptions for patient safety over the weekend, we won’t have to go to court.
“Since you have decided against it, I intend to petition the Supreme Court to have the action you are considering illegal.”
It is not yet clear when the Supreme Court will hear the case, but it is likely to happen in the coming days given the tight deadlines before the strike.
In a message to union members, Ms. Cullen said: “Unfortunately, tonight the threat has become a reality. We told the government that this is wrong and unjustified. The only way to deal with bullies is to fight back, including in court.
“Before the end of the week, the court will decide whether this government supports the application of draconian anti-union laws.
“If the government manages to silence members like you and convince the court to stop part of our strike, we will have no choice but to cancel it. Our strike has always been safe and legal. We never ask our members to do anything unsafe or contrary to your code of ethics.
“It is so wrong that the government is using taxpayer money to sue our profession. We are determined to show that the nursing profession is strong and determined and to protect our members’ right to strike.”
For the first time, there are no national exceptions to the upcoming strike, meaning the strike will for the first time cover emergency rooms, intensive care units, and oncology wards.
However, Mr. Barclay said in his letter that there were discussions about “ensuring patient safety without preventive derogations, as agreed by the RCN in relation to previous strikes”, which he welcomed.
Rising tensions with the RCN came after members voted to reject a proposal for a 5 percent pay rise for 2023-24, in addition to a lump sum payment of up to £3,789.
Of the 61 percent of those eligible to vote, 46 percent supported the deal but 54 percent opposed it, a result that leaves plans for aerial strikes outside the union’s current mandate as a high threshold for complaints was set. delete the ballot.
To receive a legal strike mandate, 50 percent of all eligible voters must support the strike.
The wage proposal caused controversy among unions, with Unison members voting to accept the proposed wage increase.
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.