Thousands of health and social care staff in Northern Ireland have begun a 48-hour strike over pay, with unions demanding parity with colleagues elsewhere in the UK. The industrial action, involving members of Unison, Unite, and Nipsa, includes nurses, ambulance staff, and hospital support workers.
Northern Ireland's health workers remain the lowest paid in the UK, having not received a pay uplift for 2023-24 and an below-inflation award for 2022-23. In contrast, NHS workers in England received a 5% increase last year plus a one-off payment of at least £1,655.
Unite's general secretary Sharon Graham blamed the Conservative Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Chris Heaton-Harris, for enforcing a 'punitive and completely inadequate budget' on the health department. She warned that the pay gap would worsen recruitment and retention, exacerbating the staffing crisis.
The Society of Radiographers and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy are also striking, with the Royal College of Midwives joining on Friday. Radiographers cited nearly 10% of the population waiting for diagnostic tests, urging pay improvements to retain staff.
Striking worker Margaret McKee from Unison declared: 'We are not fourth-class health workers; we are first-class health workers - we are not going to back down.' The Department of Health acknowledged significant disruption but said it understood the 'deep-seated frustration' over the lack of a pay offer.
