Healthcare strike avoided after new pay deal

Sunderland Royal Hospital was set to be affected by the strike

Healthcare assistants and clinical support workers have accepted a new pay deal, avoiding strike action.

Unison said members in South Tyneside and Sunderland had routinely performed clinical tasks above their pay scale and voted to take industrial action over the matter in July.

Workers are set to receive a pay rise and back pay after negotiations opened with their employer, the union said.

A spokesperson from South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust said: "We worked hard during our discussions with the union to resolve this as swiftly as we could and pleased this deal has been agreed."

The trust added clinical support workers and healthcare assistants are "a highly valued and vital part of our workforce".

Healthcare assistants have been paid at Band 2 of the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale, despite undertaking clinical tasks for "many years" that should be paid at the higher Band 3 rate, Unison said.

This includes clinical work, such as taking blood and inserting cannulas.

Clare Williams, from Unison, said: "The union will now work with the trusts to get health workers the money they're owed as soon as possible," she said.