Link to this page: http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/issue/536/4806
From The Socialist newspaper, 4 June 2008
Union members reject pay insult
THOUSANDS OF NHS workers have rejected the government's below-inflation three-year pay offer. The GMB union, representing 25,000 NHS staff such as ambulance crews, catering staff and ancillary workers, voted against the three-year offer by 95%.
Building workers in Ucatt voted by 83.8% against the offer to their 4,000 NHS members. Members of the Royal College of Midwives, seen more as a professional body than a trade union, opposed the deal by a resounding 99.5%.
12,000 members of the Unite union in the health service also rejected the deal.
The right-wing leadership in Unison, which covers the vast bulk of trade unionised workers in the NHS, says that if "Unison and the Royal College of Nursing support [the deal], there will be an agreement."
That may be so, but most of Unison's NHS members would not support the deal. The bulk of delegates at April's Unison health conference, who are far more in touch with the anger of workers, voted for a membership ballot against the proposals, that would mean a real cut in pay.
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In The Socialist 4 June 2008:
New Labour's failures: Don't just get angry, get Active
Environment and socialism
Editorial: Target 'ecological' taxes at the biggest polluters
Heathrow protest: Demonstrating against a third airport runway
Cosmetic measures against fuel poverty
Socialist Party workplace news
Belfast Airport workers: The long battle for justice
Come to the national shop stewards network conference
National Shop Stewards Network second conference advert
Union members reject pay insult
Socialist Party campaigns
Nottingham: Student protests at arrests
Socialist Party review
Socialist Party youth and students
London Youth Against Racism activity
National demo against racist BNP
Berlin: 8,000 school students strike
Housing crisis
Markets cannot end house building crisis
Nationalise Bradford & Bingley
Environment: Nuclear power
Nuclear power: An expensive and dangerous failure
Football
The beautiful game, with beautiful profits for some
International socialist news and analysis
Lebanon - civil war or rule by sectarian landlords
Israel: Olmert will go, but the political crisis will stick
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