SoR joins condemnation of proposed 1% NHS pay award

The Government recommends a pay rise is limited to 1% in 2021-22 for all NHS and Social Care staff in England covered by Agenda for Change terms and conditions. 

The Government told the PRB they would need to ‘re-prioritise’ to find a higher award. Although the PRB only applies directly to England, the Barnett Consequentials that flow from a 1% rise for England will inevitably impact on the financial scope of the devolved Nations to approve pay awards in excess of that 1%.

SoR Director Dean Rogers said: ‘On Friday morning – less than 24 hours after the Government submitted their post-budget evidence – unions met with National Employers. It was humbling to listen to numerous lay members telling their stories to employers about the sacrifices they’ve been making and the fear and stress they’re continuing to work under. Universally they talked about how demoralising and insulting the proposed increase was. We’ve challenged Trust and Board leaders to say where they stand.’

He added: ‘If our Trust and Board CEOs support the Government position they should mask up, give up part of their next weekend and talk directly to members coming off 12- or 16-hour shifts covering for absent colleagues, and explain why they think 1% is good enough. If they can’t bring themselves to do that then they should stand with us and tell the Government how this will also make their jobs harder.’

The SoR evidence called for a minimum increase of £2,000 or 3.5%, whichever is the highest. Dean added: ‘The Government’s budget cut £9bn from the current NHS budget and limits the scope for Trusts to meet a reasonable pay award without Trusts and Boards making other cuts or going into debt. None of us are in any doubt that this is the Government in the driving seat but the employers need to stand up for themselves as well. 1% is demoralising and as such will make recruitment and retention harder. 

‘It’s also self-defeating. Giving a serious and credible pay award to all NHS staff now would boost the wider economy. With the rest of the economy struggling because of Covid-19 and Brexit, boosting public sector workers would start to pay for itself in higher taxes, national insurance and student loan returns. Members will also spend the extra money in their communities.’

Dean said a 1% award would give a radiographer at the top of Band 5 an extra £5.89 a week: ‘Dominic Cummings was given a £45,000 pay rise after his trip north in lockdown as a reward for his efforts during Covid. That increase is about 150% what the same Band 5 radiographer earns in a year. This presents a shocking values gap and when they talk about reprioritisation it’s obvious where they need to start.’

Below is a table setting out how much 1% would be worth in key NHS grades.

NOTES

All payments = Before tax, NI, Student Loan or Pension deductions

Weekly = Annual increase before deductions divided by 52

Most AHPs start at the bottom of either Band 3 or Band 5.

Using recent pension data 86.5% of NHS staff earn less than £47846 p/a.

This means they will receive less than £9.21 a week if the 1% award remains.

Using the same data, 44.4% earn less than £26,824 a year.

This means they would receive less than £5.16 a week.

You would need to be an 8B to be awarded £10 a week or more.

Anyone below Band 5 would receive less than an extra £5 a week.