Hundreds of Cheshire NHS staff to walk out in pay dispute

Workers will stage a 75 hour walk out in a dispute over pay and conditions

Hundreds of NHS workers are set to go on strike next week after what they say has been "years of being underpaid".

More than 450 healthcare and imaging assistants at Mid-Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will walk out for 75 hours from 16 October.

They work across the trust's sites at the Elmhurst Centre in Winsford, Victoria Infirmary in Northwich and Leighton Hospital in Crewe

The trust said "robust plans" were in place to ensure patients remain safe.

The strikes, the first at the trust on this issue, will begin from from 07:00 GMT and continue on 18 and 20 October, in each case lasting until 08:00 the following day.

The action was backed by 99% of workers, who say that they are paid up to £2,000 less than they should be each year because they perform duties and tasks above their pay band.

The trust said an offer for retrospective re-banding to go back to 1 January 2020 was made on 3 August, but this was rejected by Unison.

Sue, a healthcare assistant at Leighton Hospital, said: "We have had enough of not being paid for the work we do.

"We've gone above and beyond for years, carrying out duties at a higher banding than we're paid for.

"We have found our voices to finally speak up for what we deserve. Our trust should be ashamed to force its health care assistants to have to go on strike for what they deserve."

Leighton Hospital in Crewe will be one of the trust's facilities affected by the strike action

Unison's North West regional organiser David McKnight said it was time the trust "stopped taking these workers for granted."

Mr McKnight noted that seven health trusts across the North West had moved many low-paid staff to a higher band and given back pay to April 2018.

"Members are really disappointed that the trust has refused to pay health care assistants what they're owed and seems to think they can get away with providing care on the cheap", he said.

"We call on them to do the right thing and to match other trusts' agreements to avoid strike action."

Russ Favager, chief finance officer at the trust, said they were "listening" to the concerns and their position was that they "should be paid the right banding for the work we are asking them to do".

He added: "The trust remains committed to working collaboratively with Unison and we would like to reassure our valued healthcare assistants, medical imaging assistants and our local communities that we will be doing everything we can to minimise the impact on our patients."

"Where planned services have been affected, patients have been contacted and informed that their appointments will be rescheduled. If they have not heard from us they should continue to attend as arranged", he added.

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