It has been reported that nurses in the United Kingdom under the aegis of Royal College of Nursing, RCN, will embark on the first strike in its 106-year history due to the rise in cost of living and the stagnancy and reduction of their pay.
The college which boasts of more than 300,000 members said the strike will surely begin before the end of the ongoing year because nurses have seen their salaries drop by up to 20 percent over the last 10 years, leaving members struggling to feed their families and pay their bills.
Some months ago, September precisely, the leading voices of the National Health Service, NHS, said the nurses were skipping meals to feed and clothe their children while struggling to afford the ever-rising transport cost.
If the strike goes on as planned, it will join the industrial actions already witnessed in the railway and law sector due to government underinvestment, inflation, and the rising energy costs.
The failure of the pay to keep up with inflation has forced hospitals to set up food banks to support their staffs in England, according to the NHS.
To prevent such occurrence in the future, the RCN has called for a serious investment from the government in the health sector in the budget that is to be presented next week. They also tasked the Prime Minister to look at reinforcing the profession with over 25,000 vacancies after many left the job over the past one year.
However, the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak has responded through his spokesperson saying the government wanted to strike a balance between the invaluable role played by nurses and the fiscal challenges bedeviling the country.
Speaking further, he said the demands of the RCN, estimated to be worth 9 billion Pounds would not be hard to deliver but there are emergency plans in place for any staff impact.
In the same vein, the Minister of Health, Steve Barclay said “We are all hugely grateful for the hard work and dedication of NHS staff, including nurses, and deeply regret that some union members have voted for industrial action.”
The health sector of the United Kingdom is under severe strain as there are seven million patients on the waiting list of hospitals waiting for treatment.
