Nurses' strike is called off

A BITTER dispute which saw Derby nurses threaten strike action in a row over their pay has been resolved.

Health union Unison has reached an agreement with hospital bosses to end the five-month stand-off.

But the financial constraints that caused the wage row still dog Derby Hospitals NHS Trust.

The Government asked the trust to make budget savings of 3% – which equated to £55m over three years.

In one bid to cut costs, the trust wanted to regrade some surgical nurses, meaning their pay would fall.

Unison said yesterday that the trust initially tried to introduce the pay cut plans “like a bull at a gate”.

Negotiations and threats of strike action from nurses led to the trust agreeing not to reduce wages for up to three years and Unison members have now voted to accept the changes, bringing an official end to the dispute.

Jenny Flood, regional spokeswoman for Unison, said: “It is very unlikely that the trust will again proceed to attempt such proposals in such a bull at a gate fashion. Instead, they should now properly consult and involve Unison members.

“The fact that hardworking people still face a pay cut is hard to swallow but we have got better pay protection, better safeguards for services and we can still challenge and campaign against any further poor proposals.”

But finance director Lee Outhwaite says the trust still needs to find £11m of savings and has called for patients and staff to come up with ideas.